Pokémon FOCUS
by ConKipcha
Summary: Where do all the Pokémon go when they can’t cope with everyday life anymore? To Pokémon Rehab of course! Acceptance into F.O.C.U.S. is highly coveted by potential trainers, but do they have what it takes to fix these peculiar Pokémon? :Original 151 only:
1. Chapter 1

Pokémon Chapter One

Principal Henry Jefferson strode down the hallway of his school, smiling hugely at the custodians as they gave the currently vacant residence rooms a last clean. In his hand he held a student's acceptance letter found under his desk just yesterday by his secretary, and only because she accidentally dropped a memo and it fluttered under the desk. None of the custodians were smiling back, perhaps because he was making them clean the rooms all over again. If an acceptance letter could sit under his desk for three months undiscovered, who knew what was lurking in the student rooms?

He eventually arrived at the mailing room, where two dozen carrier Pidgeys were dozing at their roosts. The bird he wanted was halfway down the row, sitting on the perch labelled 'Fuchsia', and distinctly plumper than the rest.

"Well," he harrumphed to himself, "I daresay you'll deliver the letter to its proper location, if your colon doesn't rupture first. They must feed you five times a day down there."

The Pidgey continued to doze, so he poked it in the belly with a corner of the letter, "Come on, budge up you lazy bird!"

It stretched its wings, fluffed its feathers, and finally donned the hat that marked it as a post-bird. It held out a leg obediently, and after attaching the letter Jefferson carried the bird to the proper window.

"Now, go forth and deliver happy tidings!"

It would have been ideal for the Pidgey to make a joyful exclamation and soar out the window. Instead, it grumped to itself, hopped out into the air, fell a good two storeys, and finally flapped its way towards Fuchsia City.

"Good lord," Jefferson muttered to himself, "another pound or two and that bird will qualify for a student project!"

*****

The herd of Tauros moved along the edge of the river, some grazing on the grass while others drank the water. One particularly large Tauros was standing slightly apart from the others, scanning the tall savannah grasses for possible threats. It continued to stand guard while the others settled in, but failed to notice the cleverly built hide a mere fifty feet away.

Inside, a man and his daughter were taking turns to peer through their pair of binoculars at the massive Pokémon. The man was tall and solidly built, and boasted a large and bushy moustache that covered his upper lip. His daughter was a wisp beside him, with short brown hair cut like a boy's and large glasses. The two were an odd pair physically, but their minds were much the same. It had taken three weeks of careful manoeuvring and tracking of Pokémon herd patterns to erect this hide, and their patience and meticulousness had paid off. They'd already seen a herd of Kangaskhan and a herd of Rhyhorn earlier in the day, but it was the Tauros that they'd wanted to see. Wild Tauros were virtually unheard of, and the herd in the Safari Zone was the largest one known in Kanto.

"She's a beautiful one, that's for certain." Horace Reeves went to hand off the binoculars to his daughter, but she was distractedly drawing a circle in her sketchbook, "Lan, I'm sure you'll get in next year."

"Oh, daddy, it just… it doesn't make any sense." She gave up all pretence of drawing and flopped onto her bum, the book sliding onto the floor, "I did absolutely everything that my counsellor told me to."

"I know, dear."

"I filled up all my spare time with community involvement."

"Yes…"

"Took a first aid course and _two_ babysitting courses."

"Now, Lan…"

"I even peer tutored most of my classmates! What else could I possibly have done?!"

"Lan dear, keep it down." He waved his hands at her anxiously, "We don't want the Tauros to know we're here."

"Yes, daddy." She heaved a sigh and looked over the drawings she'd made so far. Her sketches usually accompanied her father's theoretical papers, as he said it gave the papers the feeling of legitimacy that a snapshot couldn't duplicate.

They stayed in the hide uninterrupted for another hour, until the beating of wings, accompanied shortly after by a flop as something landed on the cloth roof of their hide, alerted them that some type of flying Pokémon had landed. Lan carefully opened the flap at the top while her father made sure the Tauros hadn't noticed, and beckoned the post-bird inside.

"Really now," her father took the rotund little Pidgey from her and squished its sides in irritation, "they could have waited until we returned to town. This research is…"

Lan paused from correcting a line on one of her earlier sketches and looked up at him, "Is what, daddy?"

"Er… the letter's for you, dear."

He handed her the letter, and her eyes widened as she saw the emblem printed across the front: F.O.C.U.S.

"Why would they be sending me a letter now?" She mused, opening the envelope reverently despite her mounting excitement.

"Read it, Lan. What does it say?" The Pidgey's eyes were starting to bulge as her father held it; clearly she wasn't the only one who was excited.

"'Miss. Reeves'," Lan began, "'greetings. I am the principal of the Facility for Open-minded Correction of Unwieldy Specimens, sometimes called F.O.C.U.S. It has come to my attention that, for reasons unknown to myself, your acceptance letter was misplaced at the time when the rest were being sent out'." She paused, unsure whether to be disappointed at the mistake of the school or excited for what was coming next. "'If you are still free from any other obligations, you are most heartily welcome to attend the school, commencing on the first of September'."

She stayed there for a full minute, staring at nothing as her mind caught up with what she'd just said. When it did, she let out a squeal of happiness and bounced up and down on her knees, unable to stand inside the hide, "Daddy, daddy, daddy! I got in! I'm accepted! I'm going to the school!"

"That's wonderful dear!" He dumped the overweight Pidgey to the side and wrapped his daughter in a bear-hug. No sooner had he done so then he realized that the sounds of the herd had gone very quiet. The corner of his eye twitched as he looked out the window of the hide; the irate Tauros matriarch was glaring through it at him.

Lan, unaware of her father's sudden paranoia, held the letter up again, "I wonder how they misplaced it?"

"It shall forever be a mystery, Lan." Horace wrapped an arm around her waist, tucked it into his armpit, grabbed his binoculars and notes, and ran. Seconds later three Tauros collided with the tent, narrowly missing the disgruntled post-bird.

"And look at this." Lan was completely oblivious to the fact she was being carried or that her father was running for their lives, "It says, 'due to the actions of one of the members here at the school, we are adapting one of the double rooms into a single, for your comfort. Please accept this as a sign of our apologies for the temporary misplacing of your letter'."

"Lovely, Lan." Horace dodged around an outcrop of boulders, and several Tauros ran by, "School teams are fun."

Lan frowned, looking up at him, "That's not what I said."

"Oh, right."

She blinked, finally realizing the change of setting, "What on earth are we doing here?"

He heaved a sigh of relief as no further Tauros appeared, and set her down, "Nothing, dear. Let's go home."

*

The Reeves household gave off the very clear vibe of a scholar's home. Half-finished papers and reports covered every possible writing surface, diagrams and maps took the place of wallpaper, and models of flying Pokémon hung from the ceiling. The building itself had once been the town's lighthouse, before a newer model was built. The old lighthouse was slated to be destroyed, until Horace bought it and had it moved to its current location. The stairs wound up the side of the interior to the light room, converted into Lan's bedroom. There were two landings on the way up, the lower one containing the basics of a kitchen and a rickety table. The higher landing was originally meant to be Horace's bedroom, but he preferred to sleep on one of the couches on the ground level. The upper landing, therefore, was overflowing with Lan's drawings and other knick-knacks she'd picked up.

Visitors to the building rarely went up the open-air stairs, afraid of falling because neither Horace nor Lan had seen a point in adding a railing. Pushed under the stairs on ground level were three empty organizers from Horace's last romance; she'd attempted to introduce some method to his research, to no effect. A pile of dirty clothes was slowly consuming the entry-hall, a reminder that laundry had better be done soon.

Horace pushed the pile further into the corner and strode into the main room, "What a wonderful day of research! Just wait until the Museum of Science reads what I have to say!"

Lan gave him an indulgent smile, trying not to roll her eyes, "They'll absolutely love it."

This was absolutely true, but it was also true that the Museum had been waiting on Horace Reeves to submit research for the past three years. He had many ideas, most of them brilliant, but he could never be persuaded to finish any of them. The Tauros project, hopefully, was going to be the one that broke the mould.

Lan left her father to shove papers from his desk and climbed up the stairs, her acceptance letter clutched tight in her hand. She paused in the kitchen, wondering if she should check the fridge for expiry dates, but decided that it could wait and continued up to her room.

The only place in the house that was closed off from the others, she had to climb up onto an unused dresser beneath a trap door, push it open, and pull herself into her room. Her room was no less cluttered than the rest of the house, brimming with seashells, Pokémon models, and more drawings. Unlike her father, she had a bookshelf for all of her sketchbooks, each one date-labelled. There was a hole in the side of the roof large enough for post-birds to enter through, and a slotted mailbox nearby. Their house served as the unofficial post-office for Fuchsia city, something that would have to change now that she was going to school somewhere else.

The Pidgey from earlier was sitting on one of the perches nearby, looking distinctly ruffled at its encounter with the Tauros.

"Thank you for delivering this," Lan held up the letter with a smile, before setting it reverently on her desk and opening her lower desk drawer. Three containers of poke-chow met her eyes, and she sighed, "We really do need to go grocery shopping soon."

She took one out and opened it, much to the Pidgey's delight. After pouring the chow into the feeding dish near the Pidgey, she sat down at her desk and penned a response:

Mr. Jefferson,

I would be delighted to attend your institution, and

look forward to arriving in a week.

~Lan Reeves.

She knew that she should probably make it longer, but the more she wrote the more she gushed about how thankful she was and incredibly happy he'd made her. A shorter answer, she decided, was better.

She clipped the letter to the Pidgey's foot and patted its head, "Finish your meal and rest up, then please return this letter as soon as possible." It cooed at her, the sound muffled by food.

It took a few minutes of irritated shuffling until she found her notepad for groceries, and after writing down "poke-chow" she opened the trap door and climbed back down into the main room.

*****

The next few days, Lan engaged herself in a flurry of packing. The old suitcase took an hour to find, and was eventually discovered propping up a corner of the dryer. Her father had needed the metal corner for research. Two drawers from the organizers were now in the suitcase's place. Just because the suitcase was free from its propping-up duty didn't mean that Lan could use it immediately, however. It was packed with old notes and models that Horace had forgotten about, and upon rediscovering them he insisted that she sit down and they go through them all together.

With three days until departure, Lan was so wound up with nervous excitement that she couldn't sit still. Horace noticed this and gave her an affectionate thump on the back, "Come on Lan, let's go and take a stroll along the beach. One of my rediscovered papers had a hypothesis about the interactions of beach and ocean Krabby that I simply must retest."

Lan immediately picked up her sketchbook, but frowned at him, "What about the research paper about investigating wild Tauros herds?"

"Oh, it's coming along."

"Daddy," she opened the sketchbook to the pages of Tauros drawings and thrust it into his face, "you were so excited about it. You need to finish it so the Museum of Science can read it, remember?"

"Yes, dear, it will be finished eventually. Now, about those Krabby…"

She sighed and followed him out the door. They tried to close the door three times before realizing two sweaters had fallen in the way. The laundry _really_ needed to be done before she left.

The late afternoon walk down to the beach was a pleasant one. There was always a sea breeze blowing in from the open water, and having lived around it her whole life she found it soothing. Her father chatted away about the merits of his old paper, wondering how he could have forgotten about such essential research. She offered the occasional opinion, but was content to just listen to his theories.

When they reached the beach, he removed a container of poke-chow from his pack and sprinkled it across the sand near the water. Lan moved further down the beach and sat on a rock half-submerged in the rising tide. She watched her father's elation as first a Krabby from the ocean scuttled for the food, and then a second Krabby dug out of the sand and made for the same piece. She opened her book and sketched the scene as the two Pokémon raised their claws at one another and circled. Horace was scribbling furious on his loose-leaf note paper, unaware of anything other than the encounter before him.

The Krabby were about to latch claws when a larger than normal wave washed over them and took them both out to sea. Lan shook her head at her father's obvious disappointment, but then turned her attention to the sea and gasped. A Lapras was making its way unerringly for the shore, and for a moment she didn't see the rider on its back. Fantasies of capturing such a beautiful Pokémon disappeared as she not only noticed the rider, but saw the collar around the Lapras's neck that declared it to be a transportation Lapras.

The boy leapt from its back, wearing a backpack and carrying a large duffel bag, and splashed ashore. He turned and waved the Lapras away, "Thanks, girl! See you in a few months!"

The Lapras chirped at him before turning and disappearing beneath the water.

The boy was closer to her than her father, and realized that she was staring at him. He turned and waved with his free hand. While she climbed off of the rock he made his way over, tossing the duffel bag further up the beach as he went.

"Hello." Lan held her sketchbook behind her back with both hands, "My name is Lan."

"I'm Lysander." He didn't even stop, just walked right up to her and gave her a hug, "It's nice to meet you."

Lan turned a bright red and spluttered, "It's… well it's good to… to meet you as well."

He released her and stepped back, smiling. She tried her best to smile back through her embarrassment. He was an attractive boy, about her age, with dark brown hair spiked by the sea salt and wind. His eyes were a cheerful hazel, and his smile was every bit as friendly as the rest of him.

She was just beginning to feel the flush on her face fade when her father arrived on the scene, his moustache bristling. He tapped Lysander on the shoulder, "And who might you be, young man?"

"I'm Lysander. Are you Lan's father?"

"I… er…" Horace had been expecting Lysander to feel intimidated by his height and bulk, "Yes, I am."

"Hello." Lysander smiled up at the big man and wrapped his arms around Horace's chest, hugging him as well, "Pleased to meet you."

"What in…?" Horace held his arms free of Lysander, confusion eventually giving way to realization, "Ah, you're from Cinnabar Island, aren't you?"

"I sure am!" Lysander turned back to Lan, noticing her pink face, "Oh, did I embarrass you?" He scratched the back of his head with a nervous laugh, "I'm sorry, Lan. Everybody hugs where I come from!"

"Oh, ah, really?" She attempted to recover her decorum, "What brings you to Fuchsia City? The Safari Zone?"

"Well actually, I'm just passing through." Lysander indicated his bags, "I'm going to spend a few days in the PokeCenter and then head out. I'm going to a school near here."

"The Facility for Open-minded Correction of Unwieldy Specimens?!" Lan could barely contain her excitement.

"Er, yeah. That's the long way to say FOCUS, right?" Lysander raised an eyebrow at her, "Are you going as well?"

"I am!" She nodded, "I was just sent my acceptance a few days ago. Somehow they lost it when all of the other ones were being sent out!"

"Wow, that's lucky for you." Lysander grinned, "What do you think it will be like? I've heard the Pokémon can get pretty unruly."

"I'm ready for them!" Lan clapped her hands together, so eager that she forgot about her sketchbook. It fell to the sand with a thud, and she scooped it up before the waves could get it.

"We should definitely train our Pokémon together." Lysander winked at her, "I think we'd get along really well. But," he glanced at the sun, sinking below the horizon, "I have to get checked in at the Pokémon Centre."

"Of course."

Horace draped his massive arm over Lysander's shoulders, "Nonsense! You can stay with us until we leave! We have plenty of room!"

Lan's mouth dropped open as she remembered the state of their house, "But daddy, what about…?"

"It's fine, Lan!" Horace led Lysander across the beach, effortlessly picking up his duffel bag as he went, "We haven't had company in months!"

"There's a _reason_ for that!" Lan cried in vain, scrambling across the sand after them. All chances of Lysander being friends with her would disintegrate if he saw inside their house. The laundry would eat him!

*

There was no chance of convincing her father to take Lysander on a tour of the town so that Lan could clean up. Horace didn't see anything wrong with their house, and reasoned that Lysander would want to put down his bags before he saw anything. So it was that when they reached the front door, Lan pointed out to sea, made an exclamation about seeing something, then dashed through the door and shoved the pile of laundry away while the two men tried to see what she'd pointed at. It was the best she could do.

She stood in front of the shifted pile as they came inside, noting in humiliation that it came level with her shoulders. Lysander was too busy staring at the openness of the main room and the hanging Pokémon models to notice, for which she counted herself lucky.

Lysander turned and gave her the same look of amazement, "This is the best house I've ever been in! Have you lived here your whole life?"

"Most of it," Lan refused to move from her station in front of the pile, "we moved in when I was five."

"Wow." He waited a few moments before asking, "Can I see where I'm going to sleep?"

Lan sighed in defeat and walked to the stairs. Sure enough, Lysander's eyebrows rose at the sight of the human-sized laundry pile. He didn't make any comment, however, just followed her up the stairs to the double bed.

"Well, here it is."

"Great!" He was careful to drop his bag away from the art and other papers that littered the area, "Where do you and your father sleep? I don't see any other beds…"

"Daddy sleeps on the couch," Lan pointed and Lysander peered over the edge to the indicated piece of furniture two levels below, "and my room is up there."

Lysander looked up the stairs to a half-landing with a chest of drawers on it. He was about to ask what she meant when his eyes caught on the trap door, "Do you mind if I look at your room? It must have a great view."

"Well, it's kind of dirty." Lan twiddled her fingers, "Maybe if I clean it up first."

Lysander nodded, "So how much should I pay you?"

Lan blinked, "Wh-what do you mean?"

"I'm going to be staying here for three days, Lan; I'm not just going to freeload off of you." Lysander shrugged, "If you like, I can pay in labour. I've been told I'm good at cleaning."

Lan didn't know whether to laugh or die of embarrassment. He wasn't oblivious, he was polite. Clearly he'd noticed the mess but didn't want to say anything, "You really don't have to. We haven't had company in ages, and it will be nice to have a new voice in the house."

Lysander grinned, "Don't encourage me. Sometimes I think my parents sent me to FOCUS just to have peace and quiet in the house!"

Lan went to respond when a bell ringing above their heads alerted her to the fact that a post-bird had just delivered a letter, "I have to go and get that. Excuse me."

She hurried up the stairs, climbed up the chest of drawers, and quickly entered her room. There was a Spearow perched on the roost, preening and looking quite pleased with itself. Upon seeing her it squawked and pecked at the feeding dish.

"Here you go." Lan fed it and removed the letter from the box, along with two more than had come while she and her father were at the beach. One was for Nurse Joy, the second was for the warden of the Safari Zone, and the third was addressed to her father.

She was about to go back downstairs when her eye caught on the return address; the Museum of Science. Reasoning to herself that she was a partner in her father's research, and his key motivator, she opened the envelope and read it:

Mr. Reeves,

As much as we wish to continue to fund you in your

research, we need to have confirmation of legitimate

progress in your studies. To that end, we are

sending down one of our top scientists to assist in

the completion of your current project. Expect them

within the week.

We sincerely hope that you will continue to provide

us with your outstanding work.

The Museum of Science

Lan slapped a hand to her forehead. This was the worst news possible! Not only did her father not have a project to show the scientist, but there were at least fifty half-done projects strewn about their home! She thanked the Spearow and ran back down the stairs.

Her father was busy showing Lysander the model of a Pidgeot's wing musculature when she arrived on the bottom floor, and the two looked over at her disgruntled state in surprise.

"Lan dear, what's wrong?"

Lan waved the letter, slightly winded. She'd nearly tripped over a child-size lump of laundry on the stairs on the way down, "Museum of Science."

Horace took the letter from her and read it. Lysander came to stand by her and placed a hand on her shoulder in concern, and she was so nervous she actually placed a hand over his. She expected her father to react as she had; instead, he tossed the letter in the air and gave a single booming clap of his hands.

"This is wonderful news!"

"Daddy, you don't have a project to show them!"

"Dearest, look around you!" He gestured with his arms, "I have dozens of projects to show them!"

"But they aren't in order, daddy!" She exclaimed, "The scientist isn't going to want to sit and wait for you to piece your projects together!"

"Oh, bosh. I'm a researcher, not a secretary!"

Lysander gave Lan's shoulder a reassuring squeeze and moved to the nearest pile of paper, "When is the scientist getting here?"

"Within the week." Horace put his fists on his hips and laughed, "I wish it were within the day!"

"No!" Lan put her hands to her head and shook it from side to side, "Daddy, if you don't impress them with a finished project, they won't fund you any more and you'll be out of a job!"

"Ah." Horace pulled at his moustache with one hand, and cupped his elbow with the other, "What can we do then?"

"Well," Lysander was holding three loose-leaf sheets, "can anyone find page four of 'The Pollen Collecting Habits of Beedrill?"

*

Lan left for a while to take the other letters to their recipients, and the two men got started on the task of sorting the numerous projects. Horace turned out to be a bigger hindrance than help, as every project over two weeks old that he came into contact with he insisted on rereading and making notes in the margins. More than once Lysander would pile up several reports, cross the room, and come back to find his work undone and Horace commenting on what a naïve fool he'd been. Finally Lysander brought a stool down from the kitchen landing and set it in the middle of the floor.

"Mr. Reeves…"

"Call me Horace, boy! Look at this theory on Goldeen colouration!"

"Later, sir."

"Horace."

Lysander sighed in frustration, "Horace, come and sit on this stool."

"Alright." Horace sat down, and then blinked, "Why?"

"Don't move." Lysander instructed, "It'll go faster this way."

"I see."

Lysander continued to sort, and not long after Lan returned. She giggled when she saw her father, immediately realizing what Lysander must have done. The sky was dark, so she left Lysander to his sorting and went up to the kitchen to make dinner. It certainly felt different to have someone else in the house, but even though she hardly knew Lysander, having him there didn't feel strange. He just wasn't the sort of person who caused a fuss.

The water for instant noodles was coming to a boil when she heard Lysander give a surprised shout from underneath the stairs. She supposed that he'd discovered the unused organizers, which her father had ironically buried in research papers. A few moments later, however, she saw him approach her father with something that looked suspiciously like a Pokèball.

She turned off the kettle and went quickly down the stairs. It _was_ a Pokèball, and Lysander was brandishing it in front of Horace in annoyance.

"It reads that there's a Pokémon inside this, Horace. How long has it been back there?"

Lan gasped. Her father hadn't owned a Pokémon in _years_!

"Well, boy, I have no idea. I'd have to see what Pokémon it is." Horace held out his hand for it, "Let's open it."

"And what if it's a Gyrados, daddy?" Lan crossed her arms, "Why don't you open it outside?"

Horace glanced down at the stool, which he'd obediently sat on for three hours, but then stood and marched out the door, "Come, Lysander! This will be a discovery!"

"Let's hope it's not an _aggressive_ discovery," Lysander muttered, following him out the door.

Lan ran upstairs as fast as she could, grabbed a container of poke-chow, and ran outside. Horace hadn't opened the ball yet, savouring the brink of discovery that he was currently on.

He spotted the container in Lan's hand and grinned, "Excellent idea, dearest! The Pokémon will no doubt be slightly peckish." He took a deep breath, held the Pokèball out in front of him, and commanded, "Pokémon, come on out!"

Nothing happened. They all stood there expectantly, but after a long pause Horace shrugged, "The ball's probably broken, and saying there's a Pokémon in there when there isn't."

"Here, let me see." Lysander took the ball and rapped his knuckles against the top, "We've got food, Pokémon. Come and get it!"

Immediately the Pokèball opened, and out came an extremely thin and evidently annoyed Raichu. It staggered on its feet before collapsing to the ground and giving a weak moan.

Completely unaware of its condition, Horace slammed a fist into his open hand, "Of course! I was researching the effects a Thunder Stone had on electrical output versus costs of upkeep for a Pikachu and Raichu!"

Neither of the younger people was listening to him. Lysander was cradling the Raichu in his lap while Lan broke the poke-chow into smaller pieces and fed them to it. The Raichu chewed weakly on the food, but paused to fix a dark look on Horace.

Horace cleared his throat, "Right then, let's get back inside. I'm as hungry as that Raichu."

The sparks that gathered on the lightning rodent's cheeks indicated that if it had the strength it would shock him, but it continued to munch on the food. Lan handed the chow over to Lysander and went back to the kettle in the kitchen. She kept glancing over her shoulder at the boy and the Pokémon on the lower level, a smile on her face. It was obvious that Lysander cared as much about Pokémon as she did, and she knew that they would be good friends.

Downstairs, Lysander crumbled several pieces of chow for the Raichu before resuming his sorting. He now concentrated on moving all of the papers away from the organizers, in case they covered any other Pokèballs. By the time he discovered with more than a little relief that Raichu had been the only one, dinner was ready.

They sat down around the table, and Lan hoped that Lysander wouldn't dwell on the issue of the Raichu. The fact that her father had forgotten about it for at least six years was horrible, but pointing this out to him wouldn't change anything.

"Well now, this is delicious, Lan." Horace ate the noodles happily, making no comment on the fact that they'd had the same thing every night for the past four months. The budget was getting tighter, and they really needed the Museum's renewed support.

Lysander nodded in agreement, "It is. So Horace," Lan tensed, but the topic wasn't what she thought, "what project are you going to show the scientist?"

"Hrm, well you know, I'm not really sure. I've been rediscovering all of these new ideas, I want to work on them all at once!" He laughed, "I'm sure that once the scientist sees all my work, he'll agree!"

"I'm glad you're so enthusiastic, daddy," Lan patted his arm, "but don't you think the scientist would rather see a single project? He might not be able to stay long enough to read it all, don't you think?"

"An excellent point, dear." Horace tugged at his moustache, "In that case, I have no idea what to show him. I suppose once we've finished sorting I can decide."

The rest of their meal was spent exchanging stories about their lives. Lan learned that Lysander had two sisters, both much younger than him, and that he was one of the top surfers on Cinnabar Island. He'd applied to FOCUS after witnessing the effect that a released Tentacruel had on a marina on the island. The Tentacruel had been abused, and in turn destroyed five boats and damaged nine others before a trainer finally took it down and captured it. Lysander speculated that it was probably one of the Pokémon that the students of FOCUS last year were given.

When dinner was finished and cleaned up, Horace declared that he was going to read over more of his research. Lan and Lysander continued to sort, but it was clear that most of the next day would be spent sorting again. Finally, when the clock had shifted from four digits back to three, Horace declared that they should all stop and go to bed.

The Raichu followed Lan and Lysander upstairs sleepily, clearly not wishing to stay with its neglectful owner. Lan wondered who was going to tell it they were leaving soon, and Horace would be its only company.

When they reached Lysander's bed, Lan waved Raichu to it, "I get mail at all hours of the night, so why don't you sleep down here, Raichu?"

The mouse rubbed against Lysander's leg, and he scooped it up, "Who knew Pokémon were so resilient? I can't go for a day without food, let alone six years!"

Lan smiled and lowered her voice so her father couldn't hear, "Thank you for not getting upset at daddy. He can be very absent-minded at times."

Lysander smiled, "It's never wise to insult your host. Besides, Raichu's fed now and will be fine." He scratched Raichu behind the ears, "We just have to hide the Pokèball before we leave, so your father can't put it away and forget about it again!"

*****

Lan woke up the next morning to the sound of the ancient washing machine chugging away. She rolled out of bed, checked the mailbox, and went through her trap door. The first thing she noticed was Lysander's level; it was completely clean. The bed was made, his bags were tucked neatly under the stairs, and all of her drawings were pilled according to size. The next landing offered a similar surprise. All of the counters and the table were sparkling from a good scrub.

If she'd been expecting a similar miracle for the bottom floor, she didn't get it. There sat Horace in the middle of twenty piles of paper, reading over them and dropping them into a messy pile on his left when he was done. Lan wordlessly went over and resorted the mess, casting a glance around for Lysander.

"Morning, dear." Horace handed her another page, "He's outside. Apparently the dryer has stopped working."

Lan thought of how it had made an ominous clunk when she removed the suitcase, and sighed. If the Museum renewed her father's grant, they could get new appliances.

Soon after Lysander reappeared, a basket of laundry balanced against his hip. He looked so much like the domestic housewife that Lan giggled. It didn't help that Raichu, obviously deciding to champion Lysander, was wearing the pink apron Lan used to wear when she was young and helping her mother in the kitchen.

To cover for her mirth, Lan observed, "Raichu looks completely healthy today."

Lysander nodded and set the basket down on the couch, "I took it to the PokeCenter this morning and Nurse Joy looked it over. After fifteen minutes in the healing cylinder it was back to normal."

"Fifteen minutes? Doesn't it normally take only five?"

Lysander winced, "The first ten were spent trying to convince it to go back in the ball. I don't blame it, right Raichu?"

"Chu!" It leapt up on the couch, and proceeded to pull a pair of underpants from the basket and fold them.

Lan consciously decided not to be embarrassed that it was her underwear, and instead continued sorting the papers, "Well, daddy, I think we're going to have to go down to the Mart and get some binders for all this to go in."

Horace sighed, "And now my own daughter is enforcing organization on me. I should have just kept Mary around."

Lan frowned, "Oh, daddy, for goodness sake! I'm doing this so you can keep doing what you love to do."

He relented, "Yes, yes, dear. I know. Oh, is that my paper on Properties of Vileplume Spores and Mating?"

She passed it to him wordlessly and stood up, dusting off her skirt and going over to help Lysander with the laundry, "I'm sorry, I usually don't sleep late. You really don't have to do this."

"Yes I do. Good morning, by the way." He gave her a quick hug and went back to folding.

She was pleased to find that her cheeks barely changed colour at his embrace, and held out a cautious hand to Raichu, "Good morning, Raichu."

It let her pet its head with no objection; it really was remarkable how much two containers of poke-chow and a trip to the PokeCenter could cure. It still steered clear of her father though.

Once the laundry was folded Lan and Lysander headed to the Mart, Raichu hopping onto Lysander's shoulder after hanging its apron on a nail by the door. For a moment Lan was envious of its choice, but then reasoned that Lysander's shoulders were much broader, and Raichu probably couldn't fit on hers without making her fall over.

"It's strange to think I just met you yesterday," Lysander gave voice to the same thought going through Lan's mind. "It feels like we've been friends for much longer."

"I agree." Lan smiled, "I'm so happy that we're both going to the Facility for Open-minded Correction of Unwieldy Specimens."

Lysander laughed, "It would really be less of a mouthful if you just said FOCUS, like everyone else."

"Bosh!" Lan exclaimed, mimicking her father.

They strolled through the doors of the Mart and made their way to the writing supplies section, where the binders were easily located. Lan picked up a hole punch as well, doubting that her father had one. A cashier in a larger city would probably be shocked at the fourteen binders they were buying, but this one was quite familiar with Lan and Horace, and smiled with encouragement.

"He's finally organizing his research, is he?" The cashier rang the items through, and pressed the 30% discount button when Lan wasn't looking, "Good. We all hope he succeeds."

Lan smiled, "There's a scientist coming to visit him some time during the week. We're making sure that he's ready."

"Well, good luck!" The cashier turned to help the next customer, and they left the store.

There was a tense moment when they returned to the lighthouse and found half their work mixed together, but solved the problem of Horace mixing papers by putting him in charge of hole punching every sheet he read and putting it into a binder. Lan sorted out the mess while Lysander kept up the cleaning, and by the end of the day all of the research was in binders and labelled. The laundry was folded and put away in various drawers, and a start had been made on the cleaning of the bottom floor. They went to bed satisfied with their work, and intending to finish it by lunch the next day.

*****

The sound of the mail-bell woke Lan up the next morning. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and took the letter out. As soon as she read the title she sat bolt upright and dashed down the stairs. Lysander and Raichu were still sleeping, but her father was up and about.

"Daddy! The scientist is here! In town! This letter says you're to go to the PokeCenter at your earliest convenience and discuss your project!"

"That's wonderful! I'll go immediately!" Horace was halfway to the door before Lan managed to leap in front of him.

"Daddy, no! You don't know what you're going to show him yet!"

They moved back into the room and poured over the different projects. Lysander and Raichu came downstairs together, Lysander still in his pyjamas, "What's going on?"

"The scientist is in town." Lan flipped quickly through one of the binders, "He wants a meeting, and daddy hasn't picked a project to showcase yet."

"What about the Tauros one?" Lysander pulled the appropriate binder from the pile and flipped to the section, "It's obvious that you'll be able to work on it, Horace, because the herd is a twenty minute walk away, and you have a lot of work on it."

"What if he doesn't like it?" Horace was pulling on his moustache nervously.

"Then show him the research on the Vileplume mating." Lan held up the binder she was flipping through, "Remember when we went on that camping trip this spring? There's that meadow full of Gloom half a day from here."

"Alright, alright. Now what do I wear?"

Lan gaped at him. For someone who had been prepared to dash down and greet the scientist in his robe and bath slippers, with no project in mind, he was certainly nervous all of a sudden!

In ten minutes they had Horace dressed, fed, and groomed. The Tauros project was in the front of his presentation binder, accompanied by Lan's sketches, and the Vileplume project was behind it, separated by a divider.

Horace took a deep breath and rolled his shoulders, "Are you sure you two don't want to come?"

Lan wanted to come very much, but knew that it would be better if he did it himself. That way he couldn't send her back to get more research, and get sidetracked, "No, you go, daddy. We'll be right here when you get back."

"Right then. Wish me luck!"

They did. As soon as he left Lysander turned to Lan, "What are the odds he'll bring the scientist back here?"

Lan sighed, "Very high, but probably not for an hour. Let's clean."

*

It was approaching nightfall, and still there was no sign of Horace. The house was the cleanest Lan had seen it since they'd moved in eleven years ago, and there was nothing else she could do to prepare for the return. Her room was cleaned, she was wearing the nicest dress she owned and she even had a clip in her hair. She hadn't even asked Lysander to dress nicely, he'd simply opened his duffel bag and put on a suit and dress shoes. Raichu had waffled between a barrette and a bowtie before finally choosing the latter of the two.

Lysander had run to the Mart earlier in the day and brought back the ingredients for a real dinner, and blueberry muffins were already cooling on the counter. As soon as Lan spotted her father from her window, she was to call down to Lysander so he could start the oven. Her leg was twitching in impatience; there hadn't even been a letter to take her mind off the return of her father.

Finally she spotted the familiar shape of her father coming up the hill, and flew through the trap door and down the stairs. Lysander switched the oven on and asked, "Is the scientist with him?"

"I don't know! I think so?" Lan thought about going back up to check, but was worried that if the scientist _were_ there, they would see her peeking through the window.

"Well, there's nothing else we can do except wait." Lysander grinned at her, "I'm so glad I'm staying here instead of the PokeCenter."

"Me too."

The sound of the front door opening brought their attention to the lower level, and they heard Horace continuing, "…is where I live. Please, come in Miss. Prescott."

Lysander mouthed the word "Miss?" at Lan, and she shrugged. They'd just assumed that the scientist was a man, but apparently not.

"Please, call me Danielle." The two adults stepped into the main room, and Danielle stared around her in awe, "Oh, this is incredible!"

From the look on her father's face, Lan could tell that he was thinking the same thing about Miss. Prescott. She wasn't a gorgeous woman like his last girlfriend Mary had been, but she had the kind of calm beauty that reminded Lan of her mother. Her physique showed generous curves that a vainer woman would diet obsessively to lose, but she carried herself with dignity and dressed sensibly in a skirt suit. Her hair was pulled into a bun, saved from severity by a few strands that must have blown loose on their walk up the hill.

She caught sight of Lan and smiled broadly, "Oh, you must be Lan. Horace couldn't stop talking about your drawings during our talk, and how you've been accepted into the Facility of… what was it again?"

"It's easier to just call it FOCUS." Lan supplied helpfully, aware of the cynical look Lysander was throwing her. She ignored it.

"FOCUS. You must be so excited. And…" Danielle turned to Lysander, "I wasn't aware Horace had a son…?"

"I'm a friend of the family," Lysander smiled, taking a cue from Lan and refraining from moving down the stairs to hug the newcomer. "Lan and I are attending the school together."

"That's wonderful. I hope you both have a lovely time." She smiled up at him, before refocusing her attention on Lan's pleasantly dazed father, "Now, Horace," she touched Horace's elbow gently, "where is that paper on the Pollen Collecting Habits of Beedrill? There is expected to be a very large increase in the population around Viridian Forest next spring, and I simply must read it."

"Right this way, Danielle." Horace recovered his equilibrium and directed her to the couch, and while she was sitting he turned to Lan for assistance. She mouthed "B" at him, and he grabbed the binder displaying that label, "Here we are."

Lan turned to Lysander with a grin, but he was handing a decorated plate with two muffins to Raichu. The mouse gingerly walked down the stairs with the plate over its head, and offered the muffins to the two scholars.

"How lovely. Thank you, Raichu." Danielle took a muffin and patted Raichu's head without taking her eyes from the research.

Lan watched her father and Danielle with their heads together over the binder, and relaxed with a smile. It was obvious that Danielle was going to approve the grant for Horace to continue research, and who knew? Maybe she would stick around and motivate him to finish his work!

*****

Morning couldn't come soon enough for Lan. The four had dined and discussed until late at night, at which point her father walked Danielle back to her accommodations and Lan got ready for bed. Only when her head hit the pillow did she remember that she was leaving tomorrow, and then she couldn't sleep. She tossed and turned the entire night, and right when she felt her eyelids meeting the smells of breakfast wafted up through the cracks in her door.

It surprised her that her father was the one cooking. He was following the cookbook with strenuous attention, and it was then that she realized Danielle was sitting at the kitchen table, drinking coffee and chatting with him.

Lan didn't think that they'd seen her yet, so she crept down the stairs to Lysander's bed. He didn't appear as though he'd had any difficulty sleeping, and was still fast asleep. Raichu twitched awake as she sat on the bed and yawned, greeting her by sitting up and sending a spark through its cheek into hers. She patted its head and shook Lysander awake.

He smiled dopily at her, "Morning."

Lan leaned close and whispered, "Danielle's here for breakfast. Daddy's cooking for her."

Lysander took in Lan's glee and stretched, "This is good news. It means he got the grant."

"Hey, you two!" Horace's booming voice was jovial, "Come down here, I've prepared a special send off breakfast!"

Lan started down the stairs, but then paused, "Send off?"

Horace scratched the back of his head sheepishly, "Well, Danielle has graciously agreed to stay an extra day and look over more of my research with me. I thought that since you had Lysander to travel with…"

"Oh." Lan sat down at the table and placed her napkin in her lap, "Well, of course. We'll have a lovely time." She abruptly changed the topic of conversation, "It smells absolutely delicious, daddy. What are you making?"

"Pancakes, bacon and scrambled eggs." He beamed at her praise, "I'm going to have to learn to fend for myself, now that you're heading out into the world!"

*

It took longer than expected to leave the house. Lan and Horace said goodbye to one another at least six times, and Danielle kept bringing up suggestions of things to bring that Lan had forgotten. Raichu clung to Lysander's leg and stared up at him with teary eyes. While Horace was hugging Lan goodbye for what he promised was the final time, Lysander knelt down and whispered in Raichu's ear where they'd hidden its Pokèball. It finally let go of his leg, and he stood.

"Thank you again for letting me stay here, Horace," Lysander gave Horace as large a hug as he could manage.

"Yes, well," Horace harrumphed, "here's a piece of advice for you, boy. Don't go hugging everyone you meet at the school."

"Why not?"

Horace rubbed the back of his neck, "Well, you see, in some areas they think that a hug is as good as a declaration of love, if you're not family. Just don't do it."

Lysander shrugged, "If you say so. Are you ready, Lan?"

"Absolutely!" She lugged at her suitcase and followed him down the hill, stopping to wave back every fifteen feet.

As soon as they were out of sight of the house, Lysander handed her his duffel bag and took her suitcase, deaf to her protests. His bag was remarkably lighter than hers, and she was forced to admit to herself that she probably wouldn't be able to carry her suitcase all the way to the school. Then again, she'd been expecting her father to come with them.

They reached the edge of Fuchsia City, and stared ahead at the road in front of them. Lysander took out his guidebook and flipped to the appropriate section, "It says here that there's a campsite halfway up route fourteen. I figure if we walk all day with a break for lunch, we can make it shortly after sundown. Then tomorrow we can walk the rest of the way, and be at the school for noon or so. Is that alright with you?"

Lan nodded, "I have to admit, I'm a little nervous about doing this without a Pokémon. Aren't there a lot of trainers along route fifteen?"

"Well, sure, but we don't have any Pokémon, so they should leave us alone. Then again," he teased, "if you want to stay here I'm sure I can make it to the school by myself. They could probably send someone to pick you up."

"Oh, don't be ridiculous!" Lan lifted her chin and marched onto the path, "Nothing is going to keep me from going to school!"

Lysander laughed and jogged to catch up with her, "If it were any school other than this one, I'd say you were crazy."

By lunchtime Lysander reckoned that they were just over halfway down route fifteen. They'd already passed several kids with Pokémon, but politely declined to fight them, displaying their Pokèball-less belts. Lan was annoyed that these children had Pokémon, when she'd never owned one in her life, and while they were unpacking their sandwiches she broached the subject to Lysander.

"Have you ever owned a Pokémon?"

Lysander grinned, "Sure, I got a Seel when I was six. I lugged it everywhere with me, like a stuffed animal."

Lan giggled at the image, "What happened to it?"

"When I was thirteen, it evolved into a Dewgong. We stayed together until last year, when it found a wild Dewgong that it liked." Lysander's face was lost in pleasant memories, "I knew I was going to apply for FOCUS, so I let it go."

"Oh, that must have been hard on you." Lan couldn't image saying goodbye to a Pokémon she'd known for so long.

"It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. The two are living somewhere around the Seafoam Islands, and my Dewgong usually comes out and swims with me when I surf near there. Besides," he winked at her, "this spring it gave me two Pokémon eggs, one for each of my sisters."

Lan gasped, "That's so beautiful! It still loves you, even though the two of you don't live together!"

"Yeah," Lysander took a bite of his sandwich, "but what about you? Any Pokémon?"

"Not a one," Lan shook her head, "but I suppose I never really noticed until the other day when you found Raichu. The Safari Zone was right there, and the beach as well, and daddy is around Pokémon all the time."

"Well, this is going to be a new experience for both of us," Lysander decided. "By the end of the school year, we'll have six Pokémon _each_."

It was a thought that occupied them for the rest of the trip to the campsite. They eagerly discussed what kinds of Pokémon they wanted, and what kinds they thought they would get. Lan had her heart set on a Vulpix, admitting to having a life-sized stuffie on her bed at home. The Pokémon type she least wanted was rock, as they tended to be large and obtuse, and powerful enough to cause damage in their brutishness. Lysander laughed and her obvious dislike and admitted that there really wasn't a type of Pokémon he outright didn't like, but he'd rather not have rock Pokémon either. For a trainer who lived on an island, it just didn't make sense. What he wanted, more than any other Pokémon on Kanto, was a Blastoise. He showed her the mini-surfboard necklace that he wore, and sure enough there was an etching of the turtle Pokémon on the back.

Once they'd exhausted the topic of what they wanted, didn't want, and expected to get, they turned to the other major question they both had about the school; what did the Facility count as "unwieldy"? Would they all be aggressive Pokémon like the Tentacruel that Lysander had described? Or would there be other issues they would have to deal with as well? What could possibly be wrong with them?

Lysander proposed that some of them would probably be like Raichu, Pokémon that had been neglected in some way or form, only worse, because Raichu had made a springboard recovery and Lysander doubted that the school would assign a Pokémon that could be fixed so easily. It was part of their mark, after all, to rehabilitate this Pokémon.

Lan hypothesized that some of the Pokémon would have abnormal behaviours, recalling a tourist she'd once seen in Fuchsia who'd made all of his Pokémon walk upright, from an Oddish to a Rattata. She was resolved to help any Pokémon she received with a problem like this to return to their natural state.

The campsite was almost full when they arrived. One of the camp wardens told them that the campsite on route thirteen was full, so students had made the extra trek down to this site. Still, they were able to find a good spot to set up their sleeping bags, and Lysander removed a jar from his backpack along with a miniature cooking pot and a metal tri-pod.

"What's that?"

"Soup in a jar," he grinned. "You just pour it into hot water and it makes a meal. It's pretty handy."

"That does sound handy. Here, let me take that." Lan picked up the pot and stood, "I'll go and find some water. There should be something around here."

"I think I saw a spigot near the entrance."

Lan nodded and made her way back the way they'd come, noticing how many more people were there since when they'd come in. For the first time, she began to feel nervous about school the next day. At the time, she hadn't thought that there would be so many people going. Her school in Fuchsia City wasn't the largest, but she supposed that if this was the only school in Kanto that catered to "unwieldy specimens", it was bound to have a lot of Pokémon that needed "correction".

She finally found the water spigot, but discovered with some annoyance and embarrassment that it was so rusted she didn't have the strength to turn it on. She tugged at the handle for a few minutes more, and was about to admit defeat when she heard one of the wardens talking at the front.

"Sorry, kid, but we're full in here. You'll have to go to the campsite on route fifteen."

She leaned around the shack to look at who was being turned away. He was dressed only in white and black, with white streaks in his shaggy black hair. The only colour on him, besides his skin tone, was the dark amber of his eyes.

"If I go to the route fifteen campsite, I won't get there until sunrise," the boy reasoned. His voice was so soft Lan barely heard him.

"Well we're full here, so…"

"There you are!" Lan trotted up to the boy and tugged on his arm, "We thought you'd get here an hour ago!" She turned to the confused warden, "He's with me. Come on, let's go get you set up!"

They got as far as the water spigot, and then Lan paused, "Erm, you wouldn't happen to be able to turn this on, would you?"

The boy grabbed the handle and twisted. With a great screech the handle slowly turned, and dirty water began to pour out. They waited patiently for the dirt to work its way through the pipes until the water ran clear, and then Lan filled the pot. It was heavier than she expected, and the boy immediately took it from her.

"Oh, thank you." She smiled, "I'm Lan Reeves."

He held out his hand, "Jericho Fleming. Thank you for letting me in."

"It's not a problem," she shook his hand enthusiastically and led the way back to their campsite, "it's somewhat of a family tradition, actually."

***************************************************************************************************************************************************


	2. Chapter 2

Pokémon Chapter Two

Lan felt a soft hand on her shoulder and came awake with a stretch. Jericho was kneeling beside her, and once he'd made sure she was awake he moved back to his seat by the fire and continued stirring the porridge. Lan sat up and looked around for Lysander, eventually spotting him returning with another pot of water. Apparently Jericho travelled with a miniature pot as well.

"It's the big day!" Lysander put the pot down near her, "Here, you can wash your face in that. The line for the shower is huge; we figured we'd just wait until we got to the school."

Jericho nodded, spooning out the porridge, "If we leave right after we eat, we'll beat the rush."

Lan couldn't get over how soft his voice was, while not being quiet as well. He was speaking at the same volume as Lysander, but it just didn't have the same tone at all, "Sounds good to me!"

They'd found out last night over supper that Lysander was from Lavender town, and worked in the Pokémon Tower that housed deceased Pokémon. She supposed that was why his voice was so soft, but still. He'd never owned a Pokémon either, believing that it was pointless to own something that would inevitably die. He and Lysander had argued about this until Lan decided it was time to sleep, so she was glad to see that the two boys appeared to be on better terms this morning.

They were the first group out of the campsite, but nowhere near the first to arrive at the gates to FOCUS. The campsite on route thirteen was much closer than the one on fourteen, and by the time they got to the school it was almost ten o'clock. When the gates finally opened, right on time, the students at the front didn't move they were so awed by the school.

"Right, if you want to gawk step _in_ and to the _side_." One of the moving volunteers instructed over a loudspeaker, "Come on, come on, you're all supposed to be settled by lunch for an orientation!"

Once they were through the gates it was obvious that they would soon be separated; none of them were roommates.

"Meet by the Alakazam statue!" Lan heard Lysander call right before she lost sight of him.

A zealous volunteer hefted her bag up and waved her forward, "This way, this way."

She followed in a daze, completely disoriented by the noise and buildings. All around her volunteers were herding groups of boys and girls into the residence buildings, and more students were running around, insistent that they could find their own way. Some students were accompanied by their parents, and Lan was suddenly very glad that her father had remained at home.

Finally they reached her room, and when the volunteer opened it with her key he whistled, "Room to yourself, huh? Why's that?"

"My acceptance letter got lost, and was only sent a week ago." Lan flushed and scurried into the room, and the volunteer left her after setting down her suitcase.

She supposed that the room would be a reasonable size for two people, but for someone who'd spent most of her life in a room barely larger than the average bathroom, it was enormous. Rather than shove the two beds together, the second bed had been removed, she supposed to discourage any nocturnal activities that many girls her age were partaking in. She wrinkled her nose at the thought and began to unpack, noticing as she went several spots around the room that would make ideal sleeping spots for a Pokémon, once a cushion or two were added.

She was almost completely organized when a loudspeaker in the hall binged on and announced that the orientation luncheon would now be taking place on the main green. She scrambled out of her room, careful to lock the door behind her, and looked out the windows for the Alakazam statue. It proved illusive to find, and while she was looking one of the volunteers saw her and hustled her along. Her protests fell on deaf ears.

Like so many other students, she was slotted into the line for food, asked whether she wanted a hotdog or hamburger, and spat out the other end with the grilled entrée and a can of pop. She moved out of the way of the other students and continued her search for the statue. She finally saw it nestled between two massive oak trees, and was making her way there when someone bumped into her and she felt the unpleasant sensation of mustard dripping down her arm.

"Oh, oopsies!"

Lan turned to see who was speaking, and winced. The first thing she saw was colour, followed immediately after by sparkles. Finally these sensations resolved into a girl roughly four inches shorter than her, with curly brown pigtails and disturbingly wide purple eyes.

"Gee, I'm so sorry about that!" Her voice was, to Lan, obnoxiously cute, and it was obvious that she was making it that way on purpose. Also, she didn't sound particularly sorry at all, and this was confirmed by what she said next, "But you know, you really should watch where you're going."

"I beg your pardon?" maybe it was the unusual heat of the day, or the roaring volume of dozens of conversations, or the press of multiple bodies all around, but Lan wasn't feeling particularly passive, "You're the one who bumped into me!"

The girl gaped at her, "Well, aren't you rude? I was just walking, and you practically jumped in front of me!"

"I most certainly did not!" Lan's hotdog was starting to bulge due to her squeezing it, "You weren't watching where you were going, and blundered into me like a-"

"Lan!" Lysander materialized suddenly from the crowd, relieved to have found her, "It's a madhouse here! Small wonder you couldn't find us! Oh, good, you have food; apparently they ran out. Hey, is that mustard on your arm?"

There was a pause as everyone present caught up with what he said, and then Lan nodded, "Yes, it's mustard. Let's go."

"Oh." Lysander blinked, turning to the girl in confusion, "Is this your roommate?"

"No." The venom in Lan's voice was enough to curb any further questions from him, and make him lead her away through the crowd. She waited until they were approaching the statue before exclaiming, "Honestly! If she'd just offered a sincere apology I wouldn't mind, but to blame me when _I'm_ the one with condiments dripping down my arm!"

They reached the statue, and Jericho wordlessly wiped her arm clean as she continued her tirade on the girl's behaviour. She eventually ran out of breath and fell to munching indignantly on her hotdog, and soon after several men and women in suits appeared on the stage set up in the centre of the green.

"Hello, students!" The man speaking was too far away for them to see any particular details, although from the wind blowing it appeared that he had a bowl cut, "Welcome to the Facility for the Open-minded Correction of Unwieldy Specimens! As your principal, I would like to offer you my sincerest congratulations. Acceptance into this facility is strenuous, and difficult to achieve. Well done, students!" He paused as the enthusiastic crowd cheered.

"Every year, the school takes in one hundred students. Now, you may not think that's very many," his voice was contemplative, "but at the end of the year, each of you will have a full team of Pokémon to look after. That's six hundred Pokémon on the premise, before you add the Pokémon belonging to the faculty."

He gave another pause, this time to let the students appreciate the number, "Here is how the semester is going to work; for tomorrow and Friday, everyone will have class all day. After that, you will alternate between morning and afternoon classes, the other time being used to correct your Pokémon." Another cheer, and when the crowd went quiet again he asked if there were any questions.

Lan didn't see who asked, but the principal chuckled, "Well, aren't you eager? The question is 'When do you get your Pokémon?' The answer is this Friday!"

Soon after the other speeches were made, the crowd began to disperse. Parents hugged embarrassed children goodbye while younger siblings attempted to hide and be left behind. Lysander tugged Lan and Jericho over to one of the many exhibits set up; the courtyard with exhibits was packed with students, but virtually none of them were actually looking at what was on display. Lysander intended to break that pattern.

"Hi!" He pointed at a stack of Frisbees on one side of the table, "Are you giving those away?"

"This is the display for the Sand and Sun club," the man behind the table droned.

"So, can I have a Frisbee?"

"Our club takes bi-weekly trips to local beaches in the area to relax and enjoy the sun's rays."

"There's sun today, can I enjoy it with a Frisbee?"

"We also compete in several beach competitions."

"And give out Frisbees so people can train?"

"All you have to do is sign up."

Lysander took the pen and clipboard thrust at him with confusion, "For a Frisbee?"

Off to the side, Lan giggled while Jericho's annoyance grew, until finally he stomped over, grabbed a Frisbee in one hand and Lysander's arm in the other, muttered a short, "Thanks" to the man, and pulled Lysander away. He shoved the Frisbee into Lysander's chest and snapped, "There."

Lysander held the disc reverently, "But didn't I have to pay for it?"

"No. If you want the stuff, just walk past and take it. Never talk to them unless you want to join the club."

"Oh, well in that case…" With a giddy leap Lysander disappeared amongst the display tables, leaving Lan to fall even further into helpless giggles.

*

When the boys finally left her room, Lan surveyed the mess with an indulgent eye. Lysander had returned to them absolutely dripping with stickers, recipes, and other assorted merchandise, most of which still occupied Lan's floor. The highly coveted Frisbee, however, had accompanied its master back to his room. Along with the numerous water bottles and FOCUS pins were their trays and dishes from dinner. Lysander had campaigned for eating in the cafeteria, but both the overwhelmed Lan and the introverted Jericho had voted for a quieter setting.

Lan followed her usual routine of changing into her nightgown and grabbed her toothbrush, realizing after that she would have to invert the process from now on. She opened her door just in time to see three streakers flash by, hollering at the tops of their lungs. She slammed her door closed, and made due with using one of Lysander's water bottles and spitting into her garbage can. The morning couldn't arrive soon enough.

*****

Thunderous pounding on her bedroom door alerted Lan that it was morning, and she'd forgotten to set her alarm. She rolled out of bed and scrambled to the door, wrenching it open in dazed half-wakefulness. Lysander was standing there, a wide grin on his face. Upon seeing that she was still in her nightgown, his grin faded to a frown.

"You'd better get dressed, Lan, class is in half an hour."

"Eep!" She closed the door and scrambled around for her things, thanking her upbringing that she'd had the sense to lay out her first day outfit before she went to bed the night before. It wasn't anything flashy, but she'd only worn it in front of the store mirror before and it was special.

She brushed her hair as quickly as she could, remembering at the last moment to put in the special barrette her father had given her as a goodbye present. She scrubbed her teeth quickly, rinsing in the same method as the night before, and was ready with fifteen minutes to spare.

When she opened the door again Jericho was there as well, and he'd brought milk, a piece of toast, and some grapes. Lan ate and drank as fast as she could without spilling on her clothes or disgusting them. Lysander cracked a few jokes about how excited she'd been and how she would have missed the first class of the day without them, while Jericho stood silently and watched her with a bemused smirk hinting at the side of his mouth.

"Oh dear, the dishes are starting to pile up in my room," Lan shut the door on the mess, bag slung over her shoulders, and accompanied them down the hall. "It's disgraceful, really."

Lysander could have made a comparison between her residence room and her house, but seeing as most of the mess was his he thought this would be unfair. They ended up running the last third of the way to class, it being much further than they'd anticipated, and barely slid into their seats before their teacher entered the classroom. Lan was worried that he'd notice her frazzled appearance and make a critique about last-minute entrances, but he was more concerned with the other half of the class, many of whom were clutching foreheads and yawning.

Lan murmured to Jericho, "Did they not sleep well last night?"

"Probably averaged five hours among them. The alcohol undoubtedly has something to do with it as well." His narrowed eyes told her his roommate was experiencing the same feelings as the rest.

The teacher was about to start lecturing when the door opened and a girl entered the class, as awake as the rest were comatose. Lan had no idea how she was navigating, because her eyes were closed, and she was throwing her hands from side to side. Any thought that the girl was sleepwalking was immediately destroyed by the presence of bright purple earphones that covered her entire ears, and a Discman on her belt. As more of the class was jerked from its zombified state by the appearance of this girl, oblivious to their stares, she put her hands on the headphones and bobbed her head from side to side. When she got to the seat beside Lysander she spun around twice on the balls of her feet and dropped into it, switching off and removing her headphones in the same motion.

Lan had no idea how to address her, but Lysander was his usual open self and immediately chirped, "Hello!"

"Now that we're all present," the teacher's tone was icy, "I will give you an overview as to what you can expect in my class. And you," he thrust an accusing finger at the latecomer, "there is to be no music played in my class. This is an institution of learning, not some dance club."

She barely waited until his attention was elsewhere before rolling her dark blue eyes, and Lan couldn't help but smile. While she believed that it was an issue of respect to be on time and give the teacher her undivided attention, there was something about the girl's attitude that hooked her interest. Then again, maybe it was just the girl's clothing. Mismatched shades of purple with one bright yellow striped knee-sock tended to draw the eye.

At the end of class they all moved out of the room as a clump. The one hundred students had all been divided into pods of twenty, to assist in the 'social process'. They were in the Green pod; there were also Red, Blue, Yellow, and White pods. Lan turned to Lysander to confirm which class was next, having left her timetable behind in her confusion, but he was busy chatting with someone else. Jericho was ahead of her, his knuckles turning white as he listened to his roommate yammering about the party he was going to have tomorrow night. The one time Jericho spoke was to remind the boy that tomorrow was when they got their first Pokémon, but the reminder fell on deaf ears.

Not content to silently follow the crowd, Lan plucked up her nerve and tapped the music girl on the shoulder. It wasn't that Lan was shy; the girl was dancing to her music as enthusiastically as before, and might accidentally whack Lan in the head. The girl slid her headphones off her ears and around her neck, displacing more long, sandy brown hairs from the messy pile on her head.

Lan smiled at her, "Hello." She wasn't the best at talking to girls, as the scene from the day before had demonstrated, "I was wondering if you knew what class we have next?"

"No idea," the girl still had a bounce to her step and was shifting her head from side to side, "I'll check though."

Rather than slip one backpack strap off and pull her bag in front of her, she spun around once and came back to where she started with the schedule in hand.

"It looks like physical education."

Lan felt tempted to sigh. Knowing a shower awaited her at the end, she personally had no problem with running around and working up a sweat. She rarely did so, but saw the validity of making everyone do it; a fine example would an overweight trainer be to an overweight Pokémon! No, her problem was that she suspected many of the other girls in her pod would complain, and it would make it less enjoyable. A gym class full of show-offs and whiners was her least favourite place on earth.

She suddenly realized that she'd never thanked the girl, but instead of being indignant the girl had simply gone back to listening to music. She tapped her shoulder again, and the girl slid her headphones off in the same manner as before.

"Sorry, I forgot to say thank you."

"For what?"

"For… for telling me which class is next."

"Oh. Well, you're welcome."

"My name is Lan." She held out her hand, "What's yours?"

"Erica," she took Lan's hand and shook it, then moved her hands back to her headphones.

"Are you excited for tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow?" Lan almost thought she was going to ask what tomorrow was, but instead she shrugged, "I guess so. I can't wait to get my Pokémon, it's just… I don't want my roommate to get hers."

Lan thought this was unfair, but decided to give Erica a chance to explain herself, "Why?"

"If you gave her a _normal_ Pokémon she'd traumatize it. What's she going to do with one that's already unwieldy?"

A sudden flash of inspiration hit Lan full in the face, and she asked, "I don't suppose your roommate has big, purple eyes?"

Erica immediately grinned, "You're the vicious mustard girl! She wouldn't shut up about you last night, the more I heard the more I couldn't wait to meet you!"

"She's the one who bumped into me," Lan clarified. She was making great progress in acquiring her first female friend, and she didn't want to fail now.

"I can believe it." Erica stashed her Discman in her bag, "She walked into the corner of her desk last night and later accused me of pushing it at her. Her name's Suza, by the way."

They shared a laugh at their accused misdeeds, and continued to idly chat until they reached the gym. Their gym teacher, and the accompanying facilities, was as stereotypical as they came. His physique actually reminded Lan of her father, only with some steroids on the side. He greeted them by pointing a muscled finger at a table along the gym wall.

"White for boys, blue for girls. You were all told to bring your running shoes, so I expect you all changed and ready in ten minutes. Move!"

One of the girls complained, "Why can't girls have white?"

He laughed, "Because when you sweat, the shirts tend to go see-through, and I'm not teaching sex ed.!"

Lan and Erica were the first two girls out of the change room, having taken a mere four minutes to get ready. The teacher, who later introduced himself as Coach Belle, applauded their speed and bellowed at the rest to hurry up.

"Alright, we'll start easy today. Hopefully this pod will work more than the last one!" He pointed at the ground, "Ten push-ups, ten sit-ups, and then pick a partner for co-ed tennis!"

Lan glared at her thin arms, willing them to work as she knelt down and placed her palms on the wooden floor. The first few went fairly well, but on the sixth her arms wobbled and she went down with a squeak. Coach Belle was there in an instant.

"Come on, kid, don't let all that enthusiasm go to waste! Elbows here, hands here, and don't stick your bum in the air!"

Upon hearing these words Lan was aware of several boys looking over in interest, and was glad her face was already red from exertion. Under Belle's watchful eye she finished her warm-up and lurched to her feet.

"Hi!"

Lan turned and watched Lysander greet Erica in the Cinnabar fashion, "I couldn't help but notice you and Lan are friends. Let's be partners!"

Erica gave Lysander and awkward pat on the shoulder, and he released her, "Sounds good to me. Do you play tennis?"

Lysander grinned and folded his arms behind his head, "Never held a racket in my life!"

It was obvious that most of them hadn't, and Coach Belle had a field day correcting postures and mocking serves. Lan and Jericho were playing against Erica and Lysander, and by the end of the class the four had managed seven returns total. They didn't even bother keeping track of how many serves never made it over the net.

As they staggered off to the showers Lan heard Lysander quip, "Why couldn't we have started with badminton?"

*

Finally they braved the cafeteria, and managed to find seats together. Jericho didn't join them, as he was attempting to sort out the imminent party organized by his roommate and meant to take place in his room. His place was taken by a boy introduced as Conrad, Lysander's roommate, and Lan remembered him as one of the few who actually played tennis. He wore his black hair short, and his dark brown eyes had an arrogant streak in them.

Lan hated sounding like a broken record, but once again she asked, "What Pokémon does everyone hope they get?"

Erica shrugged, rattling the headphones around her neck, "I'd prefer some sort of flying Pokémon, so I could travel easier, but anything works for me."

"I only want strong Pokémon," Conrad sneered at the idea of weakness. "Once I'm finished here, I'm joining the Pokémon League."

"Wow," Lan tried to be diplomatic, "I've heard the League can be really difficult."

"Not for me, it won't," he boasted. "I won't let anything distract me from training."

"Except class," Lysander suggested.

Conrad looked like he wanted to disagree, but thought better of it and raised his chin with a cocky smirk, "I include school in my training."

"After all, the Pokémon we get _are_ school projects," Lan added.

The annoyed look Conrad sent her told her that he was going to say that, and that he always had to have the last word. A fact worth remembering.

*

A day and almost six classes later, Lan thought she was going to burst with excitement. The case containing twenty Pokèballs had sat conspicuously on Mr. Hartog's desk throughout his entire lecture, a velvet blanket draped over it. He continued to drone on about the local rivers and streams, but even studious Lan wasn't paying attention. Like the rest of her pod, her eyes travelled from velvet cloth to clock and back again.

To her right, Erica was bobbing her head to an imaginary beat, and for one jealous moment Lan thought she'd somehow slipped the coils of anticipatory excitement that strangled the rest of the class. Then she realized Erica was tapping her palms against her legs not only to keep rhythm, but also to wipe the sweat off. Jericho was as silent as always, his fingers crossed in front of his face and his elbows on his desk as his eyes occasionally flicked to the clock. Conrad was clenching and unclenching his fists, and his jaw was clenched.

With fifteen minutes to go, a lone hand rose into the air. Heads turned in hopeful curiosity, and Mr. Hartog cleared his throat, "Yes, Lysander?"

"Sir, I'm a huge fan of rivers and water in general, and I'm sure everyone else is too, but I've read a statistic that says thirty-five percent of students skip classes that don't involve topics about blood, sweat, or sexual intercourse. I therefore promise on my graduation diploma that I will attend every one of your classes and additional lectures for the whole year if you end class now and hand out our Pokémon Projects."

The class held its breath as Mr. Hartog considered this. He paced with agonizing slowness to the front of the room before turning and regarding Lysander, "On your diploma, you say?"

Lysander nodded wordlessly.

Mr. Hartog shrugged, "Oh, very well. _You_ may come and choose a Pokémon."

The cacophony of noise that instantly filled the room as each student professed their undying love and devotion to geography made the old man chuckle. He motioned for silence, and waited until Lysander was standing by the case before musing, "Am I to understand that in exchange for letting you go fifteen minutes early, I am to have one hundred percent class attendance for the rest of the school year?"

The enthusiastic affirmations kept him chuckling, "Oh, very well. Come up here, all of you."

Long before he'd finished speaking, students were scrambling from their seats and pushing against one another to get to the front first. They may as well have waited and walked, because Mr. Hartog made them all stand in a circle around his desk and count to ten anyway.

"Now, stay where you are." He moved forward and took the corner of the cloth.

With a dramatic yank he whipped it off the case, and they all stared in confusion. Twenty Pokèballs were in front of them, in a neat five by four grid, but there was absolutely nothing to indicate whose was whose, or what Pokémon was in each one.

"Lysander, you get to choose first," Mr. Hartog gestured to the twenty identical balls. "Once he's finished, we'll proceed clockwise from where he was standing."

Lan watched him step forward, his hand hovering over the various balls, until he finally picked one and held it up to his face. He eventually stepped back, and then it was her turn. She spent far longer than him, trying in vain to find any little marker that would give her a clue. Finally she noticed a tiny nick in one of the balls, decided it was a sign, and scooped it up. Erica had no such nerves; she'd apparently decided that one was as good as another, and simply took the one closest to her.

From there the rest of the class behaved either like Lan or like Erica. Half were confident that there was some way of telling, while the other half gave good-natured shrugs and took one at random. Conrad took so long the boy beside him started cracking his knuckles. Jericho was last, but took his Pokémon with as much excitement as if he'd been first.

"Right, get out of here," Mr. Hartog flapped his hands at them. "I'll see every single one of you on Tuesday afternoon. Have fun with your Pokémon this weekend."

They exited the classroom, and Lan noticed with amusement that Lysander had produced his Frisbee from his backpack.

She pointed down the hallway to the stairs leading to the main green, "Let's go and see our Pokémon!"

***************************************************************************************************************************************************


	3. Chapter 3

Pokémon Chapter Three

The grounds of FOCUS were peaceful, all the students inside completing their final classes of the day. A few wild Pidgey hopped around the lawn, pecking at bits of bun left over from the barbeque two days prior. They took flight when one of the doors nearby banged open, spewing forth the excited Green pod onto the grounds. The students spread out quickly, all eager to release their Pokémon but heeding their teacher's last-minute instruction to do so at a fair distance from each other, just in case. These were, after all, "unwieldy specimens".

Lan followed Lysander and Conrad out past the others, wanting to keep pace with them but unable to match their longer strides. Erica and Jericho were farther back, more content with a jog.

Conrad finally decided that he couldn't wait any more, and slid to a stop. From his backpack he produced the aviator's cap that he wasn't allowed to wear in class and tugged it into position on his head. He was winding up to execute a dramatic release when someone called him. He turned around and his eyes narrowed as the boy who'd cracked his knuckles in class approached.

"Hey, what say we make this interesting?" The boy was tossing his Pokèball up and down casually, "You haven't seen your Pokémon, and I haven't seen mine. Let's have a battle, right here, right now."

Lysander wrinkled his nose, "Don't be ridiculous, these Pokémon aren't ready for battling, they're-"

"I accept." Conrad pushed Lysander out of the way, "This'll be interesting. I hope you're ready to lose."

Lysander made a motion at Jericho, clearly indicating that the other boy should attempt to intervene, but Jericho shrugged and leaned against one of the many trees dotted around the grounds. Erica slipped on her headphones, and Lan smoothed her skirt and sat down on the grass. With a "we're going to get in trouble" sigh, Lysander dropped down beside her.

The boy grinned and adjusted his baseball cap, "You're awfully cocky for a guy who doesn't even know what's in his Pokèball. Alright, Pokémon, come on out!"

Conrad threw his Pokèball as well, "Let's do this, Pokémon!"

Lan watched with excitement as the two Pokèballs released their Pokémon, but wasn't so completely absorbed with the ensuing fight that she didn't see the other students from the Green pod quickly forming a circle around the battle.

The challenger's Pokémon was the first to emerge, and the crowd gave an appreciative gasp as an Electabuzz raised its arms and shouted a challenge. Conrad's Pokémon was next, and several girls squealed when they saw it was a Lickitung. A vein twitched in Conrad's temple, telling anyone watching that he wasn't so pleased with his first Pokémon, but he quickly reset his confident smirk and prepared to battle.

"So, neither one of us has an advantage. Then it looks like I'll have to create one of my own. Lickitung, use your wrap attack!"

Lickitung ran at the Electabuzz and shot its long tongue out of its mouth, wrapping it several times around the other Pokémon.

"Too bad for you Electabuzz gets its electricity from its antenna! Now, Electabuzz, use your thundershock!"

Electabuzz focussed the electricity between its antenna and sent it into Lickitung. The two Pokémon were surrounded by the crackling yellow energy for a few seconds, and then it disappeared. Both Pokémon were twitching, and didn't move when commanded to do so.

"Ha! Lickitung is paralyzed by thundershock!"

"Says the guy whose Electabuzz is paralyzed from Lickitung's wrap! Come on, Lickitung, shake off that paralysis! Be strong!"

The Lickitung narrowed its eyes and slowly unwrapped its tongue from the still-twitching Electabuzz, then turned to Conrad.

"Good job! Now use slam and take that Electabuzz out of commission!"

The Lickitung regarded the Electabuzz, but then turned back to Conrad and started to run towards him.

"What are you doing?!"

"Look who can't control their Poke… huh?!"

The Electabuzz had turned to its master as well, and proceeded to leap at him with its fists raised. The same girls who'd squealed before now screamed as they realized the Pokémon were hostile, and the crowd broke like a water balloon as students scrambled to safety.

Conrad glared down his Pokémon, but at the last moment summoned it back into its Pokèball and remained unharmed. His opponent, whether through slow wits or shock, didn't have the same idea until his Electabuzz had landed several punches on his back. Finally, curled in a ball, the boy stuck the Pokèball out from under his arm and summoned his aggressive Pokémon back into it.

Lan stared at Conrad, suddenly not so eager to see her own Pokémon. What if it was every bit as vicious?

Conrad tucked the Pokèball into a place on his belt and turned to Lysander. It was hard to read his face, but he was intent on finding out what Pokémon his roommate had, "Well?"

Lysander stood up, distinctly uncomfortable, and finally held his Pokèball out and commanded it to release the Pokémon inside. As a reflex he covered his face with an arm, but when nothing happened he lowered his arm again. In front of him was an Exeggcute, regarding him with bemusement on half of its faces and annoyance on the other half.

"Oh!" He knelt down and smiled, "Hello there."

"Don't patronize me!" One of the Exeggcute heads glared at him, "I'm every bit the individual you are!"

The students gaped at it, and Lan exclaimed, "It speaks our language!"

"How dare you call us an 'it'!" The same egg snapped, indignation on its face, "We aren't some single-minded collective, we're all individuals!"

One of the other eggs rolled over to Lysander's knee and bumped him. He reached down and picked it up, bringing it level with his face, "Er, hi…"

The egg smiled shyly and turned to the others, "I like him."

"That's because you're soft-boiled," a third egg sneered. "Humans are all the same, when will you realize that?"

Immediately an argument broke out among the eggs, and the one who had professed its positive feelings for Lysander popped out of his hands and landed on the egg that had insulted it. Lysander feared cracking shells, and tried to separate the eggs with his hands; he withdrew them when three of the eggs bit him. Finally he got annoyed and summoned the Exeggcute back into its Pokèball.

"A Pokémon that speaks human could be really useful," Lan suggested, still stung at how Lysander's Pokémon had reprimanded her.

"Yeah, all I have to do is figure out how to stop it from cracking its different parts." Lysander tipped back onto his bum, "I think I'd prefer to get one that was aggressive. Conrad, want to trade?"

Conrad raised his nose at him, "Not a chance." He turned his haughty gaze on Jericho, completely ignoring the fact that the girls had Pokèballs as well, "Are you planning on opening that any time today?"

Lan thought this was harsh, seeing as how Conrad hadn't even been introduced to Jericho, but she was too eager to see everyone else's Pokémon to chastise him. Jericho remained silent, just tossed his Pokèball into the grass in front of him. It resolved into a Paras, which looked around at the much taller humans around it curiously.

"What's with these weak Pokémon?" Conrad scoffed, "At least mine is… augh!"

The Paras, upon hearing Conrad speak, had launched itself through the air and fastened onto his leg. He shook his leg, trying to get it off, but to no avail. He eventually paused, realizing that it wasn't attacking him, and stared down at it in puzzlement.

"Does it not know how to attack?"

Lysander was the first one to notice the small, but rapidly growing larger, rocking motion in the Paras's lower body, "Oooh, Conrad… it's… er…"

Erica giggled, "Paras is humping your leg."

Conrad gave a horrified bellow and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Get this stupid Pokémon off my leg before it finishes!"

Rather than summon it back into its Pokèball, Jericho moved forward and gently tugged the Paras free. It wriggled its legs, trying to reattach itself, but eventually gave up and peered up at Jericho with adoration in its eyes. He tried his best to smile back, not normally given to smiling, and the Paras purred happily.

Jericho set it down, while Lysander remarked, "I didn't know Paras purred…"

Jericho grabbed one of its mushrooms as it made to leap at Lysander's knee, "Apparently they do. Lysander, didn't you pick up a stuffed Alakazam the other day at one of the booths?"

"Yeah, but why do…" Lysander's mouth dropped open and he wrinkled his nose, "Oh, come on! Can't you just get something else? I was going to give it to one of my sisters."

"That's favouritism. Besides, I'll get you one before the break. There isn't anywhere on campus to buy one now though."

Lysander sighed, resigning his Alakazam stuffie to its fate, "Alright, I'll go and get it after Lan and Erica see what Pokémon they have."

Lan took this as her chance to finally see her Pokémon. She leapt to her feet, ignoring the disdainful look Conrad shot her at her enthusiasm, and jogged a few feet away from the group. With infinite care, she pushed her glasses up on her nose, narrowed her eyes with purpose, and threw the Pokèball, "Let's go, Pokémon!"

She threw it far, just in case it was like Conrad's Lickitung. To Lan, it felt like time slowed down to a ridiculous pace before her Pokémon finally resolved, and when it did she gave an elated cheer and leapt into the air.

"A Vulpix! I got a Vulpix! It's the Pokémon that I've always wanted, and I got it! Oh, this is the best day of my life!" She stopped cheering, frowned, and looked down. The Vulpix was latched onto her sock, and tugging for all it was worth. Lan knelt down and scratched its head, "Aren't you just the sweetest Pokémon!"

That was when it bit her. She pulled her hand back, shocked more than anything else, and stared at it. Vulpix glared up at her and growled, showing its small and sharp teeth. It started to bark at her, and she felt tears starting to well in her eyes. This was her favourite Pokémon, the one that she'd dreamed of since she knew what a Vulpix was; how could it not like her?

Lysander came over and knelt down beside her, noticing how upset she was, "Come on, Lan, it's not that bad. Look, it hasn't leapt at you, right? Here," he handed her his Frisbee, "throw this for it. Maybe it just needs to learn how to play."

Lan gave her eyes a quick wipe and nodded at him, "You're right. I knew I wasn't going to get a perfect Pokémon, because that's not what this school is about." She stood up and waved the Frisbee at her Vulpix, "Ready? Go and get it!"

The Frisbee flew a rather wobbly ten feet, and the Vulpix watched it land before continuing to growl at her. The hackles on its back were rising, but Lan forced herself to look at it positively. Lysander was right; the Vulpix wasn't attacking her any more, and that was a good sign.

"You've probably had some horrid trainers, haven't you?" She recalled her father's Raichu and winced, "Well don't worry, Vulpix, I'm going to be the best trainer you'll ever have!" It stared at her for a moment, considering this, and then went back to yanking on her sock, "Hey!"

Erica regarded her Pokèball, wondering if she really wanted to release her Pokémon or not, before picking up a discarded stick nearby and dropping the Pokèball onto the grass. Out came a Charmeleon, which turned and stared at it stick-wielding master in confusion.

Once she was sure it wasn't going to leap at her, she dropped the stick and knelt in front of it, "Hey there, buddy. I'm going to be your trainer."

The Charmeleon uttered an affectionate, "Char!" and wrapped its front claws around her middle in a hug.

The effect this had on the other four was instantaneous. Conrad turned purple with rage that Erica had a strong Pokémon that didn't want to attack her. Lysander looked from his Frisbee to the Charmeleon and back again, sighing that Erica had a Pokémon with legs. Jericho shook his head with a rare half-smile, still restraining his Paras from going after Conrad, and Lan swallowed any jealousy she may have displayed and formulated a plan.

"Hey Erica!" She tugged her sock free from Vulpix, "Why don't Vulpix and Charmeleon play together? They're both fire types!"

Erica finished stroking Charmeleon's snout and smiled, "Okay. Go play with Vulpix, Charmeleon, just be careful. It's a little aggressive."

Charmeleon trotted obediently across the lawn to Vulpix, who immediately squared its feet and snarled at it. Charmeleon hesitated, but then gave a friendly, "Char!" and thwacked the fox Pokémon over the head with its tail. A not-altogether peaceful wrestling match started between the two, and Erica came to stand beside Lan.

"Wow, Erica, you must be happy."

Erica frowned, "I'd be happier if I knew what was wrong with it. There has to be something FOCUS would call 'unwieldy', or else it wouldn't be here."

By now the other pods were pouring out of the school and releasing Pokémon, and soon shouts of joy and shock, mixed with the odd high-pitched scream, could be heard echoing off the buildings. The teachers, done for the day, were strolling across the grounds observing the different Pokémon students were getting. One of these teachers held a fresh cup of coffee in her hand.

Erica blinked as a red blur vaguely recognizable as Charmeleon streaked past her, headed unswervingly for the teacher with the coffee. Erica gave a strangled shout and ran after it, and just as Charmeleon was leaping at the woman Erica threw her Pokèball. Her Charmeleon never actually touched the teacher, but that didn't stop the woman from screaming and throwing herself to the side, her coffee mug shattering on the pavement.

"I'm really sorry about that!" Erica helped the teacher to her feet, secretly glad that the woman wasn't one of her teachers, "I guess my Pokémon has a thing for caffeine."

The teacher spluttered, but she'd taught there long enough to know what a mess the first Friday always was. She straightened her suit jacket and nodded, "Well, now you can take steps to prevent it." She then spun on her heel and marched back into the building.

Lan caught up with Erica, her Vulpix back in its Pokèball, "What happened? Charmeleon was doing so well!"

Erica released Charmeleon and contemplated what she would do as the salamander Pokémon instantly began licking at the disappearing puddle of coffee on the pavement, "This is going to be interesting, that's for sure."

They re-entered the school to see a horde of students in front of the gym doors. It didn't take long for them to discover that several department stores in Celadon city had donated surplus items to the school to help with the disciplining of the Pokémon. The press to get inside was huge, and it didn't help that many students had their Pokémon out to test the different items. Lan felt tempted to release her Vulpix and let it clear a path, but it was more than likely that the fox Pokémon would then turn on her, and her socks were already showing half a dozen holes.

Eventually they made it into the gym, and stared around at the pandemonium there. Two Onyx were crammed against the roof, various bird Pokémon settled in the rafters and ignored commands to come down, and a peevish Jigglypuff was mercilessly poking a bawling Clefairy. The teachers and organizers were running everywhere, trying to regulate how many items each student was taking while attempting order.

"Well, what is this disgraceful mess?"

Lan jumped, not having noticed Principal Jefferson appear at her side. He held out a dignified hand and released an Alakazam from its Pokèball, "Kindly bring about order, Alakazam."

Every Pokémon in the gym was instantly encased in a glowing purple light, and when they tried to move they couldn't. Jefferson strode into the middle of the room and tapped his throat. His Alakazam held a hand towards him, bent the spoon it was clutching, and suddenly the principal's voice sounded like a loudspeaker, "All students will return their Pokémon to their Pokèballs immediately. You may each take one item, and _only_ one, and then exit out the south doors. Get to it."

Soon the gym was in order, and students were moving smoothly in and out of it. Lan chose a chew-toy that was disturbingly similar to her skin tone, hoping it would pacify her Vulpix. She wandered around the gym, looking at what the others picked as a Poke-Aid. Under Jefferson's watchful eye, Erica was choosing a baby-harness for Charmeleon that would fit. Jericho was standing by a pile of stuffed animals, trying to decide which would be best for Paras. A group of girls nearby were giggling and commenting on how sensitive Jericho must be, flushes on their faces. Conrad was looking at models of airplanes, no doubt thinking that he didn't need any help controlling Lickitung, until Lysander wrapped an arm around his shoulder and cheerfully presented him with a tube of Mace.

Lan waved to Lysander, and he jogged over. She held up her chew-toy, "What did you get for Exeggcute, Lysander?"

He held up a large box, "It has nine board games in one. I thought they could do some team building with it and maybe not hate one another so much."

"Good idea." Lan scuffed her shoe on the gym floor, guilty that it left a black skid on the wood, "I wish I could show daddy my Pokémon. He was so excited for me."

"Oh, look who misses her daddy." Suza was standing nearby with a group of three other girls, and Lan cursed the fact that she had to work at making girl friends, "Maybe her daddy is glad that she's gone, if she's so clingy."

Lan clenched her fists, making the chew-toy squeak, but before she could say anything Lysander put a restraining hand on her shoulder and sent a look at Suza that clearly said "can't we be mature about this?"

Suza wriggled, uncomfortable that a boy was calling her out on bad behaviour, and forced a cheery smile to her face, "I'm sorry. Here I don't even know your name, and I'm being completely and totally rude. I'm Suza," she held out her hand, a sickeningly sweet smile on her face, "let's be friends?"

Lan was sullen, but at Lysander's nudge she stepped forward and shook Suza's hand, noticing how limp the shorter girl's shake was, "I'm Lan, and this is Lysander."

"It's so nice to meet you both," she gushed. "Why don't you join me and my friends for an afternoon picnic?"

Lan couldn't swallow this abrupt turn-around, but Lysander spoke up for her, "That would be great. Let's go a good way out so we can let our Pokémon go."

Suza's face clearly indicated that she would be happy if her Pokémon never left its ball again, leaving Lan desperately curious as to what it was. Suza coughed as politely and cutely as she could, "We could, but what if some of the Pokémon want to fight? That would be too, _too_ awful!"

Lysander sighed, "They're never going to get better if we just keep them cooped up in their balls all the time. It's such a nice day, too."

Lan realized that the conversation no longer included her, and at the same time she noticed the rising pink in Suza's cheeks. She cleared her throat, "I agree with Lysander. It's the first day we have our Pokémon, and we want to spend time with them."

Suza's face was twitching, a mask of girlish cuteness concealing a furious harpy under it, but if she wanted to keep Lysander's opinion of her a good one there was only one option she could choose, "You're so right, Lan! This school is all about the betterment of Pokémon, not having silly little tea parties while they remain in need of our help."

Lysander put an arm around each girl's shoulders and hugged them against him, "There, you see? Let's not let a little misunderstanding damage what could be a great friendship!"

Lan turned her head just in time to see Suza run a subtle hand down Lysander's side. If she had a gun, she would have shot her.

As Lan and Lysander headed out for the late-afternoon picnic with Suza and her friends, Erica released Charmeleon from its Pokèball and fastened the harness around it. It looked up at her with wounded eyes, no doubt thinking that it had done something wrong.

She tapped its nose affectionately, "Don't look at me that way. We have to get you off of coffee, and this is the best way I know how."

"Char?"

"Listen, Charmeleon." Erica finished clicking it in and sat down on the grass in front of it, "You can't just run at people and attack them for coffee. It's not good. If you want coffee, at _any_ time, I want you to ask me, okay?"

Charmeleon sighed, no doubt thinking how ridiculous it looked in the baby harness.

"Now, we're going to go for a walk around campus. If you get a craving, tap my leg and I'll get you a coffee."

At this Charmeleon perked up considerably, happy that it wasn't going to be contained in its Pokèball. Erica got up, slapping the stray grass off her pants, and was about to go when she caught sight of Conrad leaning against the wall and watching her.

"What?"

"You honestly think that's going to work? Taking it around on some stupid leash and telling it to be a good little Pokémon?"

"At least my Pokémon likes me." Erica feigned shock, "What's that white stuff on your pant leg? Oh wait," she added as Conrad jumped off the wall and frantically inspected his pants, "my mistake, nothing there. Come on, Charmeleon."

Lan sat on one of the two picnic blankets, trying not to let her discomfort show. The girls were all giggling at one of the stories Suza was telling, but it was obvious that she was trying to get Lysander to laugh as well. Lysander, in a bubble of unawareness that had Lan hiding her smile in her teacup, was unintentionally ignoring Suza in favour of setting up a game of snakes and ladders for his Exeggcute. Once it was ready he released his Pokémon, relieved that it wasn't still brawling.

The egg that liked him immediately hopped to his side and leaned against his thigh, "What's this, Lysander?"

"It's called Snakes and Ladders. Would you like to play?"

"Oh, yes! Very much!" It rolled over to the pieces, and the other eggs decided that if they wanted their colour of choice they'd better join in soon.

Suza, noting that the egg who liked Lysander had a distinctly female voice, resolved not to be outdone by a Pokémon and slid over to sit beside Lysander, "Would you like some tea? I made it myself, it's a special kind."

"Oh, well sure." Lysander took the teacup, but upon seeing the mutinous look on one of his eggs' faces he poured the tea into the saucer and set it down for his Pokémon, "They're very much into equal rights."

Lan wasn't the only one who noticed Lysander was no longer calling the Exeggcute 'it'. The eggs gathered around the saucer and sipped politely away, leaving Suza to crawl back across the blanket for more tea.

Lysander looked around, "Where are all of your Pokémon, girls? I'm sure they'd love to enjoy the weather!" He focussed on Suza, putting her on the spot.

She sighed and released her Pokémon, and Lan choked on her tea. It was a Machop, but so overweight it could have been a baby Snorlax. It immediately reached for the plate of cookies in the middle of the blanket, waving its arms and making indignant noises.

Suza turned to Lan, having unfortunately caught her mirth, "And what about your Pokémon, Lan? I'm sure it would _love_ to be out of its ball."

Lan released her Vulpix, holding the chew-toy in front of her legs just in case. Sure enough, the fox lunged for her legs, its sharp teeth closing around the toy and causing it to emit a squeak. The other girls on the blanket let out various exclamations of "Oh, how precious!" and "It's so cute!", causing Suza's face to turn red with anger. She took a deep breath, pushed the plate of cookies at her gluttonous Pokémon, and leaned over to take Lan's teacup.

"Refill, Lan dear?"

Lan flushed, embarrassed about laughing at Suza's Pokémon, "Oh, um, yes please. I shouldn't have laughed, Suza, I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it," Suza gave her a sugar-smile and turned to fix her tea, "Cream? Sugar?"

"Just straight is wonderful, thank you," Lan took the teacup and sipped, "This is wonderful tea, where did-"

"That's a snake's tail! You go down!"

"It is not, the tail's on the other square!"

"Mrrf! Mrrf!"

"Spit the dice out first, dolt!"

Lysander turned back to his Pokémon, who looked about to start up again, "Whoa, whoa! What's going on here?"

The girls watched with admiration and pink cheeks as Lysander sorted out the problem, and when the Exeggcute was playing peacefully once more one of them asked, "Where did you get such good negotiation skills, Lysander?"

"Well, I'm from Cinnabar, so most of the time…"

"Cinnabar?" She smirked slyly, "I heard that whenever you meet someone you know there, you greet them with a hug."

"Yes, that's right." Lysander nodded, "But I was told that wasn't such a good idea here."

"Nonsense!" She flung her arms around him, causing the other girls to squawk with indignation, "I'm Ashley, and I insist we greet each other like you're used to!"

Lysander smiled and returned the hug good-naturedly, "Alright, Ashley."

As the other girls put forth their desire to be greeted in the Cinnabar way as well, Lan started to notice something wrong. Her stomach was twisting around in highly uncomfortable ways, and suddenly she felt a bubble forming in her lower torso. Her eyes widened as she stared at the tea and then looked up to see Suza's face, a mask of concern that didn't reach her vindictive eyes.

"Is something wrong, Lan dear?"

"I… I just have to go to the bathroom."

Lysander immediately noticed her hand clutching her abdomen, "Are you alright? Do you need someone to go with you?"

"No, no, I'm fine," she refused to show Suza any weakness, "I'll meet you back inside."

"But…"

Lan was already up and running.

As other students ran up and down the halls, laughing and shrieking as they moved between hotspots, Lysander and Erica walked down the hall to Lan's room with utter solemnity. Charmeleon was sipping away at an extra large coffee, and Erica was holding another one in case it finished it. This was going to be a long meeting, and she didn't want to have to leave halfway through for her Pokémon. Lysander's Exeggcute were tucked into the pockets of his backpack, three on each side, and were following the order Lysander had given them to remain silent. In his arms Lysander held Lan's Vulpix, left at the picnic as she dashed off, and when they reached Lan's door they paused and he raised the fox to his face.

"Now you listen to me. Lan has just had an absolutely awful encounter. We don't know exactly what happened, but she's been crying in the girl's bathroom for two and a half hours. So, for once in your hostile little life, be nice to her."

"And if you aren't," Erica remarked, "we'll make sure Lan gets a new Pokémon, and you can spend eternity in your Pokèball."

Lysander made it clear that he agreed with Erica before he tucked Vulpix back under his arm and knocked on Lan's door. Three times he knocked, but there was no answer. Finally Erica took his place, and spoke through the door, "We know you're in there, because the janitor made you leave the bathroom so he could clean it. Come on, Lan, open the door."

They heard shuffling from inside, and finally Lan opened the door. Her eyes were red and her face was pale, "Please just leave me alone."

Lysander held out the Vulpix, giving it a squeeze, "We brought you your Pokémon back."

It whimpered at her, and when she took it from him it only nibbled softly on her fingers. She stroked it absentmindedly and went to close the door, but Lysander put his foot in it. This wasn't the smartest thing to do, as he was wearing sandals, but Lan opened the door again.

"I don't want to talk to anyone right now. I just want to be by myself."

"Lysander, go get dinner," Erica commanded. He went without a word, causing his Exeggcute to remark that as he wasn't a chauvinist, perhaps they could redeem him after all. Erica forced her way into the room and closed the door behind her, "Now, what happened?"

Lan's first impulse was to keep it to herself and repeat her request for Erica to leave, but then she sobbed, flopped on the bed, and told her everything she'd surmised, finishing with, "It was the worst feeling in my whole life! And then having other girls coming in and… and _hearing_ me…"

Erica cast around for a hairbrush, finally spotting it on the far side of the room. She fetched it and started brushing Lan's short locks, saying nothing. They sat there in silence until Lan's breathing stopped including the hiccough that comes with crying. The whole time Vulpix sat obediently in Lan's lap, chewing as softly as it could on its toy.

Long before Lysander could be back with the food, there was a knock on the door. Erica nodded at Charmeleon, and the salamander set down its coffee to trot to the door and open it. Jericho was standing there, still wearing a backpack, and upon seeing Charmeleon he gave a start of surprise. That was nothing compared to the look on his face when he saw Lan.

"What happened?" He entered the room and sat down on the bed as well.

"Lan's been a victim of girlish spite," Erica supplied, clipping Lan's hair back with her favourite barrette, "Lysander went to get dinner for us."

Lysander removed a Chansey doll from his backpack, tossed it on the floor, and released Paras, "Girlish spite? Who?"

Lan shook her head, "It doesn't matter, now. I know not to trust her again."

"It does matter, Lan. You…" He subsided as Erica sent him a warning shake of the head, "What are you planning for tonight?"

"I'm not leaving my room," Lan declared. "Not even if it catches fire."

Erica and Jericho shared an amused glance, as two of the three Pokémon in the room were fire types, but Erica clapped Lan on the shoulders, "Do you know what the rules are for having people sleep in your room?"

"No…"

"Neither do I, but let's test them. I'm going to stay with you tonight. There's no way I can be in the same room with…" she almost said Suza, but caught herself, "…with my roommate tonight."

"But you'll have to go back there to get your pyjamas and things," Lan pointed out.

"They're in my backpack," Erica's tone was dismissive. "Lysander has his things in his backpack as well, and a sleeping bag."

"But…! Are we allowed to have boys and girls sleep in the same room?"

"They never said, but I'll bet after this weekend it will be banned." Erica winked, "It's our one chance to have a co-ed sleepover, Lan. Are you in?"

Lan smiled, the first smile she'd formed her lips into since the disastrous picnic, and turned to Jericho, "I suppose you have your things in your bag as well?"

He laughed, "Actually, I do! I was going to ask if I could stay here tonight and avoid my roommate's party!"

Lysander slid into the room, tons of food in his hands and wild disappointment on his face, "Jericho laughed! I heard it! What did he laugh at?!"

The three seated on the bed exchanged amused glances, and Lan shrugged, "I forget. Let's have dinner."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

It was early the next morning when Erica felt a tap on her shoulder. She sat up, momentarily disoriented by the lack of obnoxiously cute snoring that usually issued from Suza. Soon after, Erica remembered she was sleeping in Lan's room, sharing a bed with her while the boys took the floor. Lysander had been pushed from his pillow in the night by his Exeggcute, and was now sharing a pillow with an unsuspecting Jericho.

Charmeleon was the one who'd tapped her, and once it saw she was awake it proceeded to shove an empty coffee cup into her face and gesture moodily at the door. Apparently doorknobs weren't its specialty, but it wasn't destructive and had refrained from burning its way out. Erica sighed and climbed out of bed, causing Vulpix to emit an irritated sleep-growl. Its no-violence truce was over.

She fished Charmeleon's harness out of her backpack, ignoring the distaste that spread over her Pokémon's face. This was the first time she'd seen it grumpy, but guessed that it would cheer up considerably once it drank its morning coffee. Charmeleon eventually realized that the only way to coffee was to don the harness, and submitted to it with a grumble.

The halls, so noisy and crowded the night before, were deserted now. Garbage, empty bottles and cans, and toilet paper were everywhere. Erica was halfway through a disdainful sigh when Charmeleon yanked on the leash, dragging her towards a cup half-filled with congealed coffee.

"No!" She planted her feet and hauled on the leash, "You'll get sick if you drink that! Wait five minutes!"

It ignored her, heaving against her with all its strength. At the last minute she released the leash, sending Charmeleon tumbling over the coffee cup. Before it could turn around she snatched up the cup and threw it into a nearby garbage can, which was disturbingly empty considering the state of the hall.

"Char!" Charmeleon glared at her, but she glared right back and scooped up her end of the leash.

"'Char' nothing! I told you to wait five minutes to get _good_ coffee," she snapped.

To her inner delight, Charmeleon looked sincerely chastised, and didn't attempt to move towards the garbage can. It followed her down the hall, holding her pant leg with a paw and trying its best to avoid eye-contact with other discarded cups, in case they contained coffee as well.

The cafeteria was as empty as the hallway, save for the early morning staff behind the various counters. Erica moved to the closest coffee seller and ordered a large, ignoring the strange look the woman gave her when she passed the coffee to Charmeleon. They sat at a table by the window, and Erica puzzled over her Pokémon. It was obvious to her that someone had introduced and addicted Charmeleon to coffee, and from its behaviour in the hall it was becoming clear that for some reason Charmeleon had then been denied it. There was no reason to lunge for stagnant coffee if your owner supplied you with fresh coffee constantly.

She sighed, leaning her chin on her hand and looking out the window. This was going to be a learning experience and a half, she had no doubt.

Lysander was awoken by one of his eggs colliding with the back of his head shrieking something about a sex maniac. The high-pitched noise woke Jericho up as well, and for a few startled moments the two boys froze as they took in the fact that their noses were touching. Jericho rolled away as soon as his brain registered it, and if Lysander's eggs hadn't been in the way he would have done the same.

The 'sex maniac' turned out to be Jericho's Paras, whose sleep-fogged mind had confused one of the eggs for its Chansey stuffie. The Exeggcute leapt onto Lysander's chest and one of the eggs uttered a fierce, "Shoo!"

Jericho shook from his head what sleep hadn't been shocked out of him from discovering Lysander so close to him, and grabbed Paras by the mushrooms, placing it gingerly on its stuffed Chansey. He ignored the disgusted expressions on the Exeggcute's faces and regarded Lysander with narrowed eyes, "Don't have a pillow of your own?"

"Er…" Lysander sat up, the eggs rolling down his chest to his lap, "My Pokémon must have pushed me over in the night. Sorry."

They got dressed in silence, taking turns making sure Lan remained asleep. Once their sleeping bags were rolled up and their Pokémon were secured they were ready to go. Lysander hadn't been sure what time Lan would wake up, and it was better for them to leave early rather than stay until she woke and risk being seen by a hall monitor.

Lysander cracked the door open and rolled one of the eggs out into the hall to see if the coast was clear. Amidst the mutterings of the others about how Lysander should do his own dirty work, the egg whispered that no one was in the hall and rolled back. He secured her in her pouch and the boys left the room, closing the door softly behind them. It was a quick decision between them that the cafeteria was the place to go, and away they went.

Charmeleon was just finishing its second cup of coffee, and Erica was mostly done her breakfast, when Conrad slid his tray onto the table across from her and sat down. He started eating, obviously expecting Erica to comment on his presence, but she just continued to sip her orange juice. Charmeleon copied her movements exactly with its coffee, a sign of solidarity that irked Conrad. He hadn't had his Lickitung out of its Pokèball since the battle fiasco the day before.

Finally he banged down his fork and cleared his throat, "Charmeleon's strong, isn't it?"

Erica shrugged, "It pulled me most of the way down the hall this morning."

Conrad paused as his brain considered this somewhat random statement, then continued, "I mean in battle."

She shrugged again, "No idea."

"Let's test it," he seized on her words immediately. "I challenge you to a Pokémon battle!"

"Don't be ridiculous. These Pokémon aren't for battling, they were placed in our care so we can help them. Besides, what have you done between yesterday afternoon and now to make your Lickitung listen to you?"

She might as well have been talking to a wall. Conrad stood and removed his Pokèball from his belt, "In half a minute I'm releasing Lickitung to fight."

"In a cafeteria. That's bound to go over well."

"Twenty five seconds."

"Did I mention I'm not interested?"

"Twenty seconds."

She raised her glass of orange juice to her mouth serenely, not bothering to speak any more. When Charmeleon copied her again, Conrad saw red. He abandoned his count, stepped rapidly around the table and seized Erica's drink, intending to wrench it from her hands. Instead the juice sloshed from the glass and soaked into Erica's pyjama top.

After an initial jolt of alarm, she rose with dignity and pointed to the exit, "The practise arena is that way. Charmeleon," she turned to her Pokémon, who was glaring fiercely at Conrad, "fight this battle to the end and I'll buy you another coffee."

"Char!" It snorted a small fireball from its nose.

Uncaring that she was still in her pyjamas and bare feet, Erica marched to the practise arena while Conrad followed, blocked from leading by an irate Charmeleon.

This early in the morning, the practise arena was empty. While a good number of students were now awake, they were heading for food and water, thoughts of Pokémon pushed to the backs of their minds as the focussed on dealing with dehydration. The arena was one of several in the main buildings, and according to the campus maps there were several arenas spread over the rest of the property as well. It was standard competition size, and sported risers on either side for a crowd to watch.

Erica stopped at the closer trainer's box, making Conrad walk across the arena. She glanced down at Charmeleon and muttered, "He's as big a bully as his Pokémon, and they both need to be taught a lesson."

Charmeleon nodded solemnly and trotted out to take its position, ready to fight.

Conrad smirked and adjusted his aviator's hat, "This is going to be a perfect way to assess Lickitung's strength. Alright," he gripped his Pokèball and threw it into the ring, "let's do this, Lickitung!"

The tongue Pokémon came out charging, thankfully towards Charmeleon, but Erica didn't give it a chance to hit, "Dodge that charge and give it a tail whip as you go, Charmeleon!"

Charmeleon leapt to the side, slapping Lickitung across the face with its tail and twisting to avoid its paralyzing tongue.

"Lickitung, use wrap!"

"Not so fast! Stare it down with leer, Charmeleon!"

Lickitung's tongue was halfway to Charmeleon when the fire Pokémon's eyes glowed a savage gold. As they continued to lock eyes, Lickitung's tongue slowly rolled back up inside its mouth, despite its struggles to continue to use wrap.

Conrad clenched his teeth and shouted, "Call yourself strong? Close your eyes and use tackle!"

Lickitung obeyed with a grimace, racing towards its opponent, but Charmeleon didn't even need Erica's command; it used its superior speed to hop neatly out of the way.

"Good, Lickitung, the eye contact's broken! Now-"

"Fire spin, Charmeleon!"

As Lickitung stumbled to a stop, a wreath of flames encircled it and grew to a blaze stretching over its head.

"Leap through the flames, Lickitung!"

It didn't listen, just continued to stagger around inside the circle looking for a way out.

"It'll hurt more if you stay there! Listen to me, damn it! Leap!"

Lickitung started to jump, but the flames roared higher and it refused again.

"Why won't you listen?!" Conrad raged.

"Too much aggression means not enough tactics," Erica quipped. "Now, Charmeleon, break off the fire spin and finish this with fury swipes!"

Charmeleon obeyed immediately, and struck with its claws while the flames were still receding. Lickitung staggered backwards under the attack, and Charmeleon broke away just in time to avoid a final swipe of the tongue. The two Pokémon faced each other, glaring one another down, but when Lickitung attempted a threatening step forwards it suddenly twitched and fell, fainting on the spot.

Once Charmeleon had poked it, assuring that its opponent was defeated, it turned and scampered back to Erica with its arms spread for a hug. She knelt and gave it the hug it wanted, then scooped it up and turned to go.

"Hey, wait!"

She didn't, and Conrad cursed as he lugged Lickitung into his arms and strode after her. She wasn't walking particularly fast, but several flights of stairs carrying a Pokémon substantially heavier than hers meant that he only caught up as she was knocking on Lan's door.

"Look, I'm…" he grimaced at the distasteful words, "I'm sorry about the juice."

"It's fine," she said shortly.

"Good. Now, do you think that if I keep my Pokémon out of its ball like you do, it will listen to me?"

Erica raised an eyebrow at his lightning recovery of arrogance, "That, and a fly swatter would help. Now leave, I'm getting changed."

As she said it Lan opened the door, and she left him standing in the hall with his comatose pink Pokémon.

At exactly noon, Principal Jefferson sent around a message to all hall monitors instructing them to send the students to the gym for announcements. They were required to sit in very specific divisions; there were five lines stretching from front to back, and the rows of each line contained two chairs each. Boys were on one side of the room, and girls were on the other. Each person was required to sit beside their roommate.

"Now," Jefferson began, "do you see the person beside you? That is the only person you are allowed to have sleeping in your room with you without a signed form from a hall monitor. Further, this half of the room," he pointed at the boys, "is not allowed to sleep with this half of the room," his finger switched to the girls. "I don't care if you've been engaged since _birth_. There will be _no_ co-ed room sharing. Understood?"

"Yes, sir," they droned.

"Good. Failure to comply with these rules will result in the immediate expulsion of the student and return of any and all Pokémon." He fixed a stern glared on his face and let his message sink in. Once it had, his entire demeanour changed and his face broke into a wide grin, "On a further note about Pokémon, I have happy tidings concerning how soon you can attain your second PokeProject!"

The assembled students perked up considerably, many no doubt thinking that their second Pokémon couldn't possibly be worse than their first one.

"There is a mandatory two-week waiting period in between picking up Pokémon, because obviously we want all of you to spend time getting to know your newfound Poke-friends. After two weeks, you merely need demonstrate the progress you have made with your current Pokémon or, in the case of Pokémon whose correction is a matter of a long period of time, present a correction schedule to be appraised. If your efforts or schedule pass inspection, you may choose another Pokémon from storage."

"Do we get to know what it is before we pick it?" This came from one of the boys in the back rows.

"_Before_ you pick it? Good gracious, no! Why, that takes all the fun from it completely! How are you to become top-rate Pokémon correctional trainers if you can pick and choose what to correct? Know what it is before you pick it, indeed!" He marched off muttering to himself, and the students took this as their cue that they were free to go.

Lan scanned the departing crowd for the others, but upon failing to find them she shrugged and took the nearest exit onto the grounds. She strolled a good deal away from the building before releasing Vulpix from its Pokèball and tossing it its squeaky toy.

While it savaged the Lan-coloured object she pulled out an extra blanket she'd crammed into her backpack and spread it on the grass. Next came her sketchbook, and finally her pencil case. She drew her Pokémon in various poses until it lost interest in the toy and went for the real thing, at which point she tossed her sketchbook to safety and defended herself with a water bottle she'd appropriated from Lysander. While her Vulpix backed off and circle her, she had a flash of inspiration.

She slowly unscrewed the cap of the water bottle and poured a small amount of water into her hand. The next time Vulpix darted in to seize her sock, she flicked water at it. It bounded away immediately, then shook, sat down, and rubbed at its face with a paw.

"Well there you are," Lan declared, returning to her drawing. "If you're going to play nasty, I have a trick or two up my sleeve!"

Vulpix shook its head and resumed chewing on the toy. At first it kept one eye on her, wondering if she would flick water at it for chewing at all, but once it saw she wouldn't it began to gnaw away in earnest.

Lan smiled, and happily sighed, "Progress."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

Early on Thursday morning, Lan and the rest of her floor that didn't have morning class was awakened by a shrill, impossible to make cute, screech. She waffled between going out into the hall to see what had so mortified Suza, and staying in her room to avoid taking the blame for it. She eventually decided on the latter. As far as she knew Suza wasn't completely sure of where Lan's room was, and she wanted to keep it that way.

The past four days had been fraught with minor disputes between the two girls, the most serious being when Suza discovered that Lan was friends with Erica. Rather than shun her roommate completely, as Lan had expected, Suza launched a veritable campaign to turn Erica into her new best friend. Apparently even Erica's patience had limits.

Once the screeching had faded Lan reasoned that Suza had either gone to her morning class or back to her room, so she opened the door. Across the hall, Erica was leaning against the windowsill and rolling a bottle back and forth between her hands.

"She always piles her hair on her head after putting conditioner in it, and leaves it that way for fifteen minutes. Every day."

Lan stared at her for a few seconds, still not used to Erica's way of speaking, before asking, "What's in the bottle?"

"Quick-dry liquid glue."

Lan's mouth dropped open as her mind went to work and imagined Suza, at the end of the fifteen minutes, taking the pins from her hair only to discover her hair stayed in its messy pile. She would probably pull at her hair, notice it was a hard mass, and then realize what had happened and let loose the screech.

"Is it water-soluble?"

"No. She'll have to comb it out or cut it off." Erica tossed the empty bottle into the trash and turned for the cafeteria, "Breakfast? Charmeleon wants coffee."

*

They took their books with them and worked on assignments until lunch, at which point a wailing Suza entered surrounded by a small horde of sympathizers. Lan couldn't help but look over, and she saw that her earlier guess as to what Suza would look like was correct. Unfortunately at that exact moment Suza happened to see her, and immediately approached their table.

Lan started to bristle, ready for another argument, but Suza ignored her completely and slid onto the bench beside Erica, leaning her head against the taller girl's shoulder and wailing, "I'm absolutely miserable, Erica! Look at my beautiful hair! Who would do such an awful, horrible thing?"

"I'm sure I don't know," Erica capped her pen and started to gather up her books. "We've had so many people in our room over the last few days, it could have been anyone." She paused, regarding Lan, "Except you, Lan. You really should come by some time."

Suza shot Lan a subtle glare before placing her arms not-so-subtly around Erica's shoulders, "But how can I fix it, Erica? I can't have my hair like this forever! I skipped class trying to wash it out!"

"What did your teachers think of that?"

Suza's eyes began to water and she pasted a nauseously cute smile on her face, "Oh, they were so understanding. I had a preliminary text report due today, but she postponed it until Monday."

Lan scowled behind her backpack. Everyone was complaining about the history report already due, and how irrelevant it seemed to be, and Suza got out of it just by batting her eyes? Sometimes the world just wasn't fair.

*

Lysander met up with Lan and Erica soon after they left the cafeteria, his notebook tucked under his arm and a triumphant expression on his face, "I officially love my Pokémon!"

Lan smiled, "I'm sure it would like to hear that."

"I've already showered them with praise," Lysander brandished his history notebook. "It took me a mere half hour to write this assignment, thanks to Exeggcute's smarts. They used to be owned by a philosophical professor, who sent them here when she retired. They know all about every scholarly topic!"

Lan couldn't help but feel jealous. She and Erica had spent the entire morning researching, and she still didn't feel as confident as she would have had she her father's books at her disposal. This thought led her to a sudden burst of home-sickness, and she couldn't quite suppress a small sigh.

Lysander put a hand on her shoulder, "Don't worry, Lan, we'll definitely compare answers before class starts. You'll be fine."

"Oh, yes of course, but that's not what I… never mind," she cut her sentence off as Suza exited the cafeteria, drawn by the loudly enthusiastic tone of Lysander's voice.

As soon as she came within Lysander's sights, Suza affected a wounded tone and tears instantly appeared in her eyes. She sidled up to Lysander, taking care to swing what little hips she had from side to side, and ran the middle finger of her right hand down his arm, "Be honest with me, Lysander; am I hideous?"

Lysander, who hadn't seen or heard her approach, jerked in surprise at this unusual opening statement and turned to face her. Upon seeing the state of her hair, his face twisted in obvious confusion and he stammered, "What on earth did you do to your hair?"

She pouted, "I didn't do anything. Someone put glue in my hair conditioner and I didn't find out until it was too late."

"That's horrible! Do you have any idea who it could be?"

"None!" She threw her arms around his neck and began to wail, aiming a kick at Lan's shins as she went. It missed, but she improvised and used the momentum to carry her leg around Lysander's and wrap back between his legs.

While Lysander had initially been quite willing to comfort her in her obvious state of distress, his eyebrows shot up at the feel of her foot wrapped around his shin. He put his hands on her shoulders and pushed away, confusion everywhere on his face and demeanour, "What are you doing?!"

Suza giggled and tilted her head, "What's wrong, silly? Never had a girlfriend?"

Lysander flushed, "I've never even been kissed, much less cuddled like that!"

A coy look passed across Suza's face before she replaced it with her usual expression, fluttered her eyelashes, and followed the rest of her friends back into the cafeteria.

Lan was livid, "So help me, Erica, if she doesn't leave us alone I'll use the glue on her mouth and nose."

Lysander stared at her, "Lan! Are you the one who did that to her?"

Erica stepped between them, "Of course not. Lan isn't allowed within a twenty foot radius of our room, unfortunately, so there's no way she could have poured the glue in the bottle. Lan," Erica put a hand on her shoulder, "I think you need a break from school. You're starting to crack."

Lan ground her teeth in frustration, "I just can't believe how easily she manipulates people."

Erica pulled her headphones from her backpack and slid them around her neck, "Well don't worry about it. Come on, let's go to class."

*

Most of the students in the Green pod handed in their assignments at the beginning of class, while a few stammered excuses that mostly involved training their Pokémon. Their teacher didn't swallow the excuses for a minute and promptly assigned them all zeroes, which should have made Lan feel good about doing her work but instead added to her growing depression. Four students in the Green pod were officially failing this course while Suza breezed through it with an extension.

After geography class was over, she headed outside by herself, released her Vulpix, tossed the squeaky toy to it, and continued walking. She didn't know where the others were, but felt that she needed some time to herself and a walk would do her good. Vulpix savaged the toy for a few seconds before realizing that she was moving on without it, and trotted after her with its toy hanging limply from its mouth. She reached the edge of the field and inspected the large sign describing the various trails in the school's forest. Feeling a sense of pod loyalty, she chose the green trail and resumed walking.

Lan wasn't the best when it came to directions, but the trails were clearly marked and she followed along with ease. She'd just passed the halfway marker when a squeal of fear followed by sounds of frustration came from up ahead. Not one for jogging, she sped up her walk until she rounded the corner and came out into a meadow. The path ran through the middle of the cleared area and twisted away in the trees on the other side, and the meadow was filled with daisies and other wildflowers. In the middle of the left side was a large oak tree, and standing beneath it was a boy, the source of the frustrated words.

He was wearing clothes taken straight from a men's fashion magazine, save for the large hat on his head that completely covered his eyes. A good four inches taller than Lan even with a slouch, he was reaching his hands up to a Pikachu crouched on a branch far above his head. The Pikachu was trembling and refusing to move. Unlike Conrad, who probably would have shouted at the Pikachu to be strong and take a leap, this boy was making a sincere attempt to comfort his Pokémon, although it was clear his patience was waning.

Lan wandered over beside him, keeping her eyes carefully off of the Pikachu to avoid startling it, "Hello. Would you like some help?"

He turned to her, a small frown on his face, "No, we're fine. Who are you?"

"My name is Lan Reeves," she held her hand out, "what's yours?"

He looked at her hand like it was a foreign object before murmuring, "Ellison Gray," and returning to encouraging his Pokémon. "Come on, Pikachu, there's nothing to be afraid of."

The Pikachu stared down at Vulpix and squeaked, curling into a little ball on the branch. Ellison sucked in a breath of annoyance and snapped, "Either recall your Pokémon or go away."

Lan took a step back, shocked at his lack of manners. She usually got along quite well with boys, and had never met one that outright disliked her. Though she would have liked to attempt to salvage the situation, she concluded that recalling Vulpix and hanging around would do nothing but annoy him further, so she turned and left. Only at the edge of the clearing did she look back, but he was focussed on his task and it was as if she'd never been there.

"How curious…"

She walked back into the residence building just in time to have a perfectly manicured hand belonging to one of Suza's lackeys drop onto her shoulder. She glanced around rather desperately for one of her friends, but they were no where to be found.

"Come along, Lan _darling_," a girl on either side gripped her by the arms and dragged her down the hallway, "we've noticed that you have no real fashion sense, and it would be a shame for someone like you to never experience the satisfaction of beautification."

Lan cast a desperate eye around for her Vulpix, but it was as vacant as her friends. She could only hope that this meant it had gone to find them, but doubted they would arrive before Suza and her goons did something to her ten times worse than the conditioner. She wasn't one to scream or make threats of telling the hall monitors, but her loud protestations of innocence echoed down the hall until the abnormally heavy wooden door of Suza's room slammed closed behind her.

It was clear that Suza had been setting up for this torment the entire afternoon, for the beds were tipped on their sides and crammed against the walls to clear the center of the room for a single chair, placed on a sheet of plastic. Piles of cosmetics lined the dresser tops, and several ominous devices were plugged into the wall sockets around the room.

As Lan was shoved into the chair and her hands were tied behind her back, she attempted a last desperate plea, "Please, you all know that I couldn't have done this. I've never even been in this residence hallway! I've done nothing!"

"Oh Lan," Suza stepped forward, a kerchief tied over her hair in an attempt to hide the mess, "I have no idea what you're talking about. We just decided that, well, we've been so awfully mean to you, leaving you to slouch around the hallway dressed like our grandmothers. Just think of this as our official welcome into the fashion community."

Lan dropped all civility in her voice and snapped, "You dragged me down the hallway and tied me to this chair, Suza. That's not much of a welcome!"

Suza giggled and held up a rather ominous-looking pair of tweezers, "I suppose it's all a matter of how you look at it. Hold still, Lan dear…"

*

Erica wandered into the cafeteria, her face growing more disturbed as she scanned the students assembled for dinner and failed to find Lan. She spotted Conrad, Lysander and Jericho at the far end of the cafeteria, and made it halfway to them before an insistent yank on her pant leg had her veering towards the coffee stand. One extra large cup and a contented salamander Pokémon later, she resumed her trip and arrived in the middle of a fierce debate between Conrad and Jericho.

"The fact of the matter is that no one ever reached the pinnacle of Pokémon training by championing weak Pokémon!" Conrad banged a fist on the table, "Only with strong Pokémon can one become a master!"

"People like you make me sick." Jericho's eyes were flashing in anger, but his voice was as soft as ever, "You're the reason so many Pokémon are driven into exhaustion and starvation; they grow dependent and are unable to fend for themselves when shown the door."

"I don't capture weak Pokémon and then release them!" Conrad stated defensively, "I just don't capture them in the first place! And you're one to talk, you who doesn't want to capture Pokémon at all!"

"Why capture and force into servitude a creature that you'll cast aside as soon as it's fatally wounded from battling too much? It's pointless."

"That's the exception, not the rule, and you know it! You're a fatalistic fool!"

"And you're a moronic battle-monger."

"And I'm looking for Lan." Erica placed her hands on the table between them, "Have you seen her?"

"No," Conrad glared at her, still clearly brooding over his lost battle, "go bother someone else with your girlish problems."

"Lan is our friend," Jericho snapped, "and if she's missing that's the most important issue. Has anyone seen her since class ended?"

"She went for a walk in the woods," Lysander offered, glad that the argument was over, "maybe she's still out?"

"It's awfully late for that." Erica glanced out the window, "The sun's been down for nearly an hour."

"She could be lost; her sense of direction isn't the best." Lysander stood up and moved around the table to stand beside Erica, "Why don't we go see if she's somewhere on the grounds?"

Erica went to say something to the other two, but Lysander steered her away from the table. She frowned, "What are you doing?"

"Getting myself away from those two. At the moment, I can't stand either one." Lysander managed a strained smile, "They both have a lot to learn about Pokémon, I think."

Jericho watched them go, a small frown on his face and concentration in his eyes. Eventually he rose and left the table without so much as a parting glare at Conrad, much less the biting remark that Conrad had been expecting.

He moved quickly from the cafeteria to Lan's room, confused as to why the others wouldn't check there first before moving out onto the grounds. He knocked and waited, but after several minutes filled with continued knocks and silence he moved on. Content with the knowledge that the other two were checking outside, he toured through the rest of the residence hallways on the assumption that Lan was doing homework with another friend.

In one of the upper hallways he encountered a group of giggling girls clustered outside a janitor's closet, and upon recognizing Suza his eyes narrowed. He was almost among the group when one of the girls on the outer ring noticed him. Her tone of giggle immediately changed, and she twirled a lock of hair around her finger. This acted as a signal to the others, who changed their giggles to match.

Jericho frowned, having no patience for the kind of behaviour they were displaying, "Fifteen girls crowded around a janitor's closet. What's so amusing?"

"Suza was just telling us a joke," the girl closest to him moved closer with an exaggerated sway of the hips. "Wanna hear it?"

"No." He sidestepped her easily and moved through the crowd of girls. The last one before the door was Suza, and the closer he got the more the blush on her face grew, "Suza."

"Yes?" She flitted her eyelashes at him.

He leaned down until his eyes were level with hers, "Where is Lan?"

The quick flicker that darted across her eyes gave the lie to her words, "I have no idea, and why should I care?" She pouted, "All the boys like Lan, what does she do to deserve it?"

"Nothing your twisted little mind is imagining." Jericho placed his hands on her shoulders, resting them there for a gentle moment before tightening his grip and slamming her back into the door, "Where is she?"

"You're hurting me!"

"You deserve worse." Jericho's mouth moved to her ear, and his cold voice murmured, "Your nauseating behaviour may fool everyone else, but you're a manipulative attention whore and I know it. Now give me the key and go away, and I won't tell the principal the information he'd need to expel you."

He pushed away from her, ignoring the shocked expressions on the faces of the other girls. There was nothing cute about Suza now; bitterness and embarrassment warred for dominance on her face. Wordlessly she held up the key to the janitor's closet, and dropped it into Jericho's hand.

As he moved to the door she found her voice and snapped, "You were more attractive when you didn't speak."

"You're probably the same," he returned. "Leave."

He waited until the lingering posse had left before turning the key and opening the door. It was pitch black inside the room, so he ran his hand along the wall until he found the light switch. Light flooded the room immediately and as soon as he saw Lan, Jericho felt like a fool. He believed implicitly in keeping his word, and in telling Suza he wouldn't snitch if she gave him the key he'd done her an incredible favour.

Lan was crouched against the far wall, her arms wrapped around her knees as she sobbed uncontrollably. Jericho knelt down in front of her and tapped her arm, "Lan?"

She looked up. Her face was smeared with enough makeup to fill a bottle, and from the swelling on her brow he could tell that her eyebrows had been removed hair by hair. Slight burn marks ran along her temples from where the curling iron had gone too close, and the chunks of hair that were curled had also been hair sprayed to stand up like antennae on her head. All she was wearing, to their mutual embarrassment, was a lacy black negligee and pumps with fishnets.

"Why does she hate me so much?" Lan hiccupped.

Jericho swore, "Lan, you have to go to the principal about this."

"I can't." Lan sniffled, "She already told me that they have an excuse all worked out, and she's so good at getting her own way…"

"I'll come with you." He pulled his jacket off and wrapped it around her shoulders, "Principal Jefferson isn't an idiot. He'll know what to do."

She grudgingly let him help her to her feet, wanting to crawl into her bed and die. Her mouth tasted foul from the sock they'd stuffed into it, and all she wanted was to go back home.

"Jericho?"

"Yeah?"

"I know you're not Lysander, but could I have…?"

He offered up a rare smile, "Of course."

His arms were barely around her when she heard a startled gasp, and they both leapt apart and stared at the doorway to the hall. Principal Jefferson was standing there, shock on his face, and behind him stood a triumphant Suza.

*

Lysander and Erica wandered along the border of the forest, taking turns calling out Lan's name. Charmeleon wandered around them, casting shadows at different angles as it tried to sniff Lan out. Exeggcute was half-asleep, the other half yawning rather pointedly at Lysander and mentioning that this was a poor way for him to reward them for their help on his paper.

They'd done a complete lap when the sound of scurrying paws drew them to a halt. From out of the night came Vulpix, and from the irritation on its face they guessed that it had been searching for them for hours. Its attempt at biting Erica's leg was easily blocked by Charmeleon, who had just finished a coffee and was ready for a fight if need be.

Vulpix growled, but then turned and scampered away, pausing to make sure they were following. It lead them into the residence building and straight up to Erica and Suza's room before sitting beside the door and pawing at it.

Erica withdrew her key and opened the door, but there was no one inside. She took one look at the state of the room, filled with used makeup products and the incriminating chair, and closed the door.

"I don't know where Lan is now, but it can't be good. Charmeleon," she knelt down and rubbed its head, "I want you to track Lan for me. Can you do that?"

"Char!" Charmeleon sniffed the air briefly before turning and leading them briskly down the hallway. They paused momentarily at a janitor's closet before continuing on, until eventually they found themselves in front of the principal's office. They could hear voices on the other side of the door, but they were indistinct.

"We can't just stand here and wait to be told what happened," Erica frowned, her foot tapping in an impatient rhythm, until her eyes fixed on the open ventilation window above Jefferson's door. She pulled on Lysander's t-shirt and positioned him under the window, "Boost me."

She wasn't quite prepared for the ease with which Lysander lifted her, and her arms pin-wheeled for a few seconds before she balanced herself and placed her feet on his shoulders, then they moved so their backs were against the wall and she leaned her head close to the window.

Lysander glanced up, thankful that Erica wore pants always, and asked, "What are they saying? Is Suza in trouble?"

"I wish," Erica whispered down. "Jefferson's saying something about the integrity and private property of the school, but he's ranting. I don't even know who's in the room!"

"I can help you with that," the effeminate giggle that accompanied the words caused Erica to flinch. Suza was twirling the only curl that had escaped the glue-conditioner around her finger, and switched her gaze to Lysander. As she realized that Lysander's hands were busy steadying Erica's legs, she strolled up to him and put her arms around his hips, "You'll never believe what Principal Jefferson caught Lan doing in the janitor's closet. And with _who_."

Lysander felt a bead of sweat trickle down his neck, "Wh-what?"

She giggled and tilted her head up towards him, "Well, I'll act like Lan, and you can be…" Her words were cut off as she uttered a pitiful shriek. While Erica would dearly have loved to be the one pulling Suza's hair, it was the girl named Ashley from her group who was doing so.

"You keep your disgustingly sparkly lips away from Lysander!" She screeched, her fingers digging deeper into the solid mass of hair as she wrenched Suza away, "You don't deserve him!"

"Neither do you!" Another girl leapt into the fray, and soon all fifteen girls were clawing and screaming at one another over who was the one most deserving to claim Lysander's first kiss. Lysander stood there in mute shock, her arms still wrapped around Erica's legs. It was strange that none of the cat-fighting girls were commenting on this, but perhaps they'd discounted Erica as a possible lip-rival.

The door to Jefferson's office banged open, thankfully against the wall that Erica and Lysander weren't leaning against, and Jefferson's Alakazam strode out with all the pomp of its master. It raised its spoons and immobilized the girls, and Jefferson came out after. Somehow he completely missed seeing Lysander and Erica, so intent was he on quelling the royal rumble taking place under his nose.

"If Lan's story hadn't cast enough doubt on your actions, Miss. Bishop, this certainly does. Brawling in the hallways? This behaviour is completely unsuited to young ladies. I," only then did he notice Lysander and Erica, "don't even want to know what this is about. Alakazam, take note of every child present and assign them all to a week of detention. Wait," he pointed to the spying duo, "exclude them. You two will join me in my office immediately, along with Miss. Bishop."

Lysander helped Erica down and they followed Principal Jefferson into his office. Some part of them wished they'd just received the detentions like everyone else.

Once the door was closed, Jefferson exhaled in frustration and moved to his desk, dropping himself into his chair with a regal 'harrumph!' While he muttered to himself about the declining deportment of the student body, Erica and Lysander took in Lan and Jericho. Lan was wearing a trench coat courtesy of the principal, but it still didn't completely cover her fishnets or pumps. Or her hairstyle. Suza hovered near the door, her confidence waning without her lackeys present.

Principal Jefferson motioned to the five chairs a Kadabra had moved to face his desk, "Sit. We have a serious problem on our hands."

*

Jericho risked the wrath of the hall monitors to take a walk after hours on the grounds. He needed to think, and he couldn't do that with the chainsaw snores of his roommate filling his ears. His Paras scuttled along behind him, stopping to test the suitability of various rocks and clumps of weeds.

Jefferson had kept all of them there under the power of his psychic Pokémon until the whole story came out. Lan and Lysander had come away with nothing but a bad experience to their names, while he, Erica and Suza were to spend the entire weekend cleaning out the bowels of the kitchens. Suza had been devastated to learn her own roommate was the cause of her hair problem, but not as devastated as Lysander. The whole group was coming apart at the seams as secrets mixed in a strange combination with false truths, and Jericho was tempted to turn his back on the whole thing.

He looked up at Lan's window just in time to see her turn off her light, and shook his head, "I don't need any of this hassle."

***************************************************************************************************************************************************


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

It was a quiet weekend for Lan; Jericho and Erica were spending most of their waking hours scrubbing out the cafeteria kitchens, while Lysander was spending time with Conrad, attempting to strengthen the bonds between roommates. She wanted to join the group as well, as they were getting some group training on their Pokémon done, but every time she approached Lysander would give her a strange look. She knew it had to do with Suza's nauseously overdone rendition of finding Jericho and Lan in each others arms, and was hurt that Lysander would even consider believing the story. She had yet to find out what Erica thought of the whole thing, and was more than a little afraid that she would lose her only female friend to a lie.

Right when Lan thought that she would at least have class to distract her from her loneliness, she remembered that her Monday classes didn't start until the afternoon. She trudged down to the cafeteria after the morning rush had departed, and was picking her way through a plate of waffles when Erica sat down across from her. There was a faint smell of kitchen grease around her that Lan wisely decided not to comment on, and she had light bags around her eyes.

"Are you alright?"

"I just spent the weekend with two people I hope never to see again." Erica buttered her toast with determination, taking note of Lan's surprised expression, "Yes, Jericho is one of those people. Honestly, his views on Pokémon and death are so off-base and negative that I can't stand to be around him. As soon as I released Charmeleon from its Pokèball to help with the cleaning, he went on about how it was supposed to be our punishment, and we shouldn't include the Pokémon in it." She crunched into the toast with relish, "Then of course there's Suza, but you know all about what I think of her."

Lan smiled, "I can't imagine Suza getting dirty."

"It's true that she wasn't pulling her weight at first, but then Jefferson came by to supervise the cleaning and she went up to her shoulders in grime. We got pictures, didn't we Charmeleon?"

"Char!"

They continued to sit and talk, and were eventually joined by Lysander and Conrad. Both boys were energized about something, and after giving Lan a hug Lysander enlightened her.

"Five days until we can apply for our second Pokémon! We've been training with them all weekend to make sure they'll pass the examination."

"Lickitung is proving difficult," Conrad conceded, "but I'm sure that they'll approve my training schedule I've constructed. By the way," he sniffed the air, "what is that horrid smell? Did someone slather bacon grease on the table?"

He never even saw the head butt coming. Charmeleon hit him fast and hard in the groin, causing him to double over in pain. The Pokémon returned to its place at Erica's side and picked its coffee back up, glaring over the paper lip at the downed trainer.

"I'm not entirely sure that was necessary, Charmeleon," Erica sipped at her orange juice, mimicking Conrad's speech, "but thank you."

A notice was issued on Wednesday that any and all trainers wishing to apply for their second Pokémon should do so at the conclusion of their class on Thursday, as their progress and schedules would need time to be reviewed. Each trainer spent most of Wednesday night going over their proposals and having their friends check them as well, because everyone wanted their second Pokémon.

The group of four were sitting under a tree at the far end of the field, each one fretting to various degrees.

Lan wasn't sure whether her plan and progress would get approval or not. Vulpix no longer attacked her, content to chew on its toy and let out the occasional growl, but if she ever tried to cuddle or pet it the Pokémon would snap at her. She had yet to attempt battling it with another Pokémon, and had no idea if it would obey her commands or not. Apart from tomorrow's impending judgement, she was also worried about Jericho. The few times she'd seen him over the week he'd nodded at her wave, but hadn't spoken with her or made any attempt to come over to the table. She only hoped that their friendship wasn't over thanks to Suza's lies.

Erica was taking a cat-nap, her back against the tree and Charmeleon's head nestled in her lap. There was no doubt in any of the others' minds that she would be approved to get her next Pokémon. Charmeleon adored her and did whatever she asked, and the schedule she'd drawn up concerning the process of weaning Charmeleon off of coffee seemed quite solid.

Lysander was busy refereeing a game of chess between his Exeggcute, who seemed quite content with the decisions he was making. Even the egg that used to accuse him of everything from chauvinism to slave-driving was accepting Lysander's ruling, after subjecting Lysander to intense scrutiny and finding him up to standard. Lysander's Exeggcute was untested on the field of battle as well, but he didn't want to push for that just yet.

Of them all, Conrad was the one most frustrated by the impending deadline. His Lickitung still wouldn't listen to him, refusing to attack weak Pokémon or take Conrad's advice when it was fighting strong ones. His schedule he was hoping the teachers would approve was basically a list of Pokémon fights he would expose Lickitung to, in the hope that after being defeated it would learn to listen to what he was telling it to do. Every time Lan attempted to point out the holes in his idea he would snap something along the lines of, "You don't know what you're talking about."

Eventually Conrad got to his feet and nudged Erica with his toe, "I challenge you to a rematch."

Both Lysander and Lan stared at him. They hadn't know anything about the battle between Erica and Conrad, and instantly found themselves wondering who had won.

"Maybe later," was Erica's laidback response, not even bothering to remove her headphones from her ears.

"Charmeleon's never going to evolve if it just takes naps and drinks coffee." Conrad crossed his arms, "You're wasting the potential of a strong Pokémon."

"Fight someone else."

Conrad glared at her, but the effect was wasted as her eyes were closed. With an indignant sniff of the nose he turned to Lysander, "What about you then? You haven't even taken your Pokémon into a single battle."

Lysander glanced down at his Exeggcute, noting the militancy in half of their eyes, and shrugged, "I don't feel like it, and neither do they."

Lan felt Conrad's eyes settle on the back of her head, and she sighed, "I suppose we could give it a try. What do you think, Vulpix?"

The fire fox glanced up from its toy, stretched, and trotted away from the tree towards a level part of the field. Lan smiled and stood as well, dusting grass from her skirt, "I suppose that's a yes, Conrad. Shall we?"

As the two set up for battle, Lysander and Erica moved closer to watch. Charmeleon edged over to the chess board instead, preferring to watch the Exeggcute playing their game. They glanced at it hesitantly, until the bossy egg finally snapped, "Just don't touch anything," and went back to strategising.

Lan faced Conrad on the field, feeling adrenaline moving through her veins. Pokémon battling wasn't something she'd ever thought of herself doing in real life, although she'd often daydreamed about it while reading her father's reports. Now here she was, about to take on one of her friends. It was only a leisure match, that was true, but it might as well have been the finals of a tournament for all the excitement and nerves she was experiencing.

"No mercy, Lan. Let's do this, Lickitung!" Conrad released his Pokémon, and it immediately charged for Vulpix, "No! Wait until I tell you to go!"

Lan wiped her hands on her shirt, "Use growl, Vulpix!"

She thanked every lucky star above when the fox listened, but her hands flew to her mouth the next second when Lickitung tackled Vulpix and sent it tumbling backwards towards her.

"We've been training, Lan. Your Vulpix doesn't stand a chance!"

Vulpix snarled and found its feet, waiting impatiently for Lan to give it further instructions. Lan summoned her most commanding voice to her, "Don't be so sure, Conrad. Vulpix, use Ember!"

It did so, catching Lickitung in the chest and knocking it to the ground. Vulpix snarled again and lunged forward, pre-empting Lan's instruction to use quick attack. It aimed directly for Lickitung's head and connected solidly, but stumbled backward dazed.

"Nice try, Lan, but Lickitung's skull is way too thick for that!" Conrad smirked and raised his chin, his arms folded across his chest.

"Do you stand in front of your mirror and practise these lines?" Erica called from the side.

Conrad flinched, "Shut up! Lickitung, get up and use pound on Vulpix!"

It obeyed, and the punch hit Vulpix in the shoulder, but before the weight of the punch could follow through Lan called, "Vulpix, use bite!"

Vulpix latched its teeth into Lickitung's arm, its body swinging around as its opponent attempted to shake it free.

"Lickitung, pull it off with your other hand! How dumb are you?!"

"Vulpix, flamethrower at point-blank!"

As Vulpix blasted the flames from its throat, Lickitung gripped it by its tails and pulled. The result was disastrous; flames spewed all across Lickitung's upper body, and it flung Vulpix away. The fox Pokémon hit against the ground head first, and didn't move, while Lickitung staggered and fell over unconscious.

Lan ran onto the field and scooped Vulpix up. It glanced up at her, uttered a weak little growl to let her know it didn't appreciate the affection, and went limp in her arms. She summoned it back into its Pokèball, noting that Conrad didn't even check his Pokémon before doing the same, and turned to the others.

"I have to get Vulpix to the Pokecentre, and Conrad has to do the same with Lickitung. I guess I'll see you two later."

"We'll come with you," Erica waved at Charmeleon and it trotted over to her, its harness in its claws. She tilted her head at it, "I thought you hated that thing?"

It shrugged and held the harness up to her.

She smiled and took it from Charmeleon, but then shoved it into her backpack, "Let's try going without it today. I think you deserve it."

Lysander turned to his own Pokémon and crouched down beside the board game, "Do you guys want to finish up first?"

The eggs exchanged glances before the female egg piped up, "We'll finish the game later, Lysander. We don't want to inconvenience you."

Lysander's eyes widened in clear surprise until the bossy egg added, "Besides, we feel that a turn in the rejuvenation machine would be beneficial for all of us. Hurry up and take us there."

"If you please," added another egg, subtly nudging its bossy companion.

Lan smiled as they left the grounds; they were going to get their second Pokémon for sure.

Friday afternoon came, and as they sat in their final class of the day many students of Green Pod were glancing out the window as the morning class students were discovering what their new Pokémon were. From the cheers and moans drifting through the open window, it was clear that it would be impossible to predict what they got. Would their new Pokémon be better or worse than the ones they had now? How would the Pokémon interact with one another?

Mr. Hartog frowned at the inattention in the class, and rapped his ruler on the blackboard. All eyes instantly returned to him, mindful of their promise to attend class with regularity and enthusiasm. His frown turned to a smile at their attempt, and he set his ruler down.

"Now, before I let you out for the day, I have an announcement to make about an upcoming field trip we will be partaking in. Two weeks from now, our geography class will be meeting in the main green when Thursday afternoon class is let out. As you will not be having class until Friday afternoon, we're going to hike into the hills and spend the evening mapping the surrounding area and enjoying nature. It will also be a wonderful experience for you to bond with your Pokémon. Questions?"

There were none, for the class was too busy talking amongst itself about what everyone was going to bring, how they thought it would go, and other similar topics of conversation.

Eventually Mr. Hartog cleared his throat, flattered when they immediately went silent, "The day is still beautiful, and I hope everyone who applied for their second Pokémon was accepted. Go find out."

They scrambled for the doors, remembering to shout 'thank you' over their shoulders, and went straight for the storage shed at the far end of the compound. No one knew if their strategies and progress had been approved yet, though when they'd handed them in they'd been told that a list was going up the next day to show who could proceed inside to get their new project.

As they ran Lan subtly edged up alongside Jericho, determined to talk to him, "Hey! Do you think you were approved?"

To her surprise, he wasn't closed off at all. He offered up a rare smile and tipped his head, "I think so. You?"

"I hope so! Why haven't you been sitting with us all week?"

Jericho shrugged, "I've wanted to meet some other people. Besides," he glanced over at Conrad and Lysander, "I'd rather not have my opinions constantly criticized. What I believe is what I believe. Here we are."

Thankful that Jericho could clear a path with his detached aura, Lan trailed in his wake up to the board. Her stomach was up in her throat as her eyes scanned down the list, but it dropped back to its rightful place in relief when she found her name. Beside it were the words "progress reasonable, action plan thorough."

Jericho was moving into the building, so clearly he'd passed as well. Lan was on the brink of thinking that the school was approving most people when suddenly the noise of the crowd diminished significantly, the door closing behind them. Of the twenty members of Green Pod, only half were inside, leaving the rest to complain and commiserate with students from other pods who had also been denied. Erica and Lysander were both there, Erica with a look of annoyance on her face as Lysander gave her a congratulatory hug, but Conrad was absent. Lan wasn't particularly surprised.

"I'll see you later, Lan." Jericho waved and headed through into the next room, despite Lan's protestant stammering.

"Lan! You got in too!" Lysander's arms wrapped around her and squeezed, "This is great, we're all getting our Pokémon together!"

"Except Conrad," Lan pointed out.

"He hasn't made enough progress with Lickitung," Lysander pointed out. "These people know what they're doing, and they're not going to give someone a second Pokémon when the first is still that uncooperative."

Lan smiled, "That's true. Let's go and get our second Pokeproject, shall we?"

They went into the next room and stopped dead. A giant Plexiglas bin of Pokèballs was before them, waist-high and forty feet on all sides. Students were digging through the Pokèballs in frustration, trying to find clues and hints as to what was inside.

Lan, knowing better than to take time like she'd done before, walked up and took the first Pokèball she saw. Lysander walked halfway down one side and pushed around for a bit before picking his, and Erica, surprising them all, took a running leap and landed in the middle of the bin, disappearing momentarily before coming back up with a ball in her hand. The teachers on duty rolled their eyes, but didn't comment further.

They made a rather desperate attempt to sneak out, but Conrad was waiting for them with an ugly look on his face and his fists on his hips. "Progress minimal, action plan absurd," he snapped. "Who do they think they are, telling me how to train my Pokémon? Obviously you three did something they liked. What was it?"

Lysander and Lan hesitated, but Erica was fast growing into the role of Conrad's personal antagonist and immediately returned, "We actually focussed on helping our Pokémon, not becoming battle masters. That's the point of this entire school, remember?"

"You…" Conrad swelled with indignation, but Lysander intercepted and pointed at the far end of the field, where the river emerged from the forest.

"Let's go open our Pokèballs there. I doubt anyone else will think of that, and that way we don't have to have the whole challenge-without-knowing thing again."

Conrad followed them, his feigned reluctance failing to convince any of them as it was overshadowed by his curiosity, and soon they were standing next to the river and glancing at one another, wondering who would go first.

"I'll go!" Lan wound up and tossed her Pokèball, praying that whatever was inside wasn't a rock Pokémon. With Vulpix as a fire-type, she had nothing to defend herself with.

The Pokèball clicked neatly off the grass and returned to her hand after opening, and the red energy resolved into a Zubat. It flapped its way over to her immediately, taking shelter in the shade of her left cheek from the sunlight. She blinked, wondering what was wrong with it, but it just continued to lie against her shoulder, clearing wishing that it could roost upside down on something.

"Erm… hello Zubat."

It squeaked lightly at her and rubbed its head against her neck. For a terrified moment she thought it was going to bite her, but no, it was just being affectionate. The thought unsettled her for some reason.

Erica leaned over and wrinkled her nose at the bat, "Great, you've got one of those Pokémon that doesn't immediately show what's wrong with it."

Lan scratched her head, taking care to use the other arm so as not to disturb Zubat, "I suppose so. Still, it's nice to have one that lets me pet it."

"My turn!" Lysander wound up and tossed his Pokèball with all his might, "Come on, be something that can play Frisbee!"

Lan giggled, noticing that Lysander's Frisbee was already lying in the grass, ready for use. His Pokémon popped out of its ball, and despite his best attempts Lysander's face fell. A Staryu.

He immediately hiked the smile back onto his face and called Staryu over. It floated towards him, but halfway there stopped, flipped so that a different spike was at the top, and continued. It was almost at him when it did it again.

Lysander scratched his cheek, clearly puzzled, "What's wrong, Staryu?"

The Pokémon was evidently frustrated with itself, and flipped again. It kept doing so as Lysander worked out the problem for himself; his new Pokémon didn't know which of its five prongs was supposed to be up. It seemed happy enough with Lysander, following him around and even attempting to catch the Frisbee that he tossed for it, but every fifteen seconds or so it would compulsively jerk a different prong into the upright position and let out an upset noise.

Erica sighed and tossed her Pokèball onto the grass in front of her, "There's no way this one can be better than Charmeleon."

Five seconds later she, Lan, and Conrad were scrambling backwards as the Pokèball's red energy grew to an enormous size. They barely got clear as the energy resolved into the fattest Gyrados they'd ever seen. Its entire body was swelled like a balloon with too much air, and it could barely hold its front half upright. Rather than slide to the river, it lay flat and rolled into it.

Conrad couldn't contain his mirth. He burst out laughing, clutching his sides as his ribs started to ache, and eventually wound up rolling back and forth on the ground, "It's too good, it's just… ah ha ha ha!"

Erica glared at him, but walked down to the riverbank and looked up and her Gyrados' eyes, which bulged slightly due to the fat behind them. It returned her gaze with a soft and friendly roar, but then its stomach gurgled and its eyes started searching for food.

Erica sighed, "We're having dinner soon. You must eat a lot, huh?"

Another roar, this one somehow indicating that 'soon' wasn't soon enough in its books.

Conrad came up beside Erica, tears of laughter at the corner of his eyes, and draped an arm around her shoulders, "So Erica, how does a Gyrados even _get_ this fat?"

"Thin ice, Conrad," she seethed.

"Thin ice? More like thick cake! Oh man, this thing wouldn't even be able to fit in the cafeteri-ah!"

Erica had pushed him headfirst into the river, "Your head's a lot fatter than my Gyrados. Go soak it."

Luckily for Erica, Pokechow was provided by the school, for the exact reason that some of the larger Pokémon were obese and it would be ludicrous to expect the students to pay for all the food their Pokémon ate from their own pockets. After getting enough food to make another human being, Erica returned to where her Gyrados was impatiently waiting. She barely escaped with her hands as the obese water snake lunged at the food and dug in with gusto, and as it inhaled the food the cogs in her head began to turn. Leaving the others to feed their Pokémon, she scouted the area for a suitable ledge she could use.

Lysander watched her go before turning back to Staryu and Exeggcute, inwardly disappointed that neither one of them was able to play Frisbee with him. Exeggcute had fixed the Frisbee with disdain and refused to have anything further to do with it, while Staryu tried its hardest to play but simply lacked the limbs. This only served to further the deep self-loathing and insecurity it seemed to have about itself, stemming mostly from the fact that it didn't know how to hold itself properly. Another source of insecurity that he hadn't counted on was Exeggcute, which seemed to take great joy in insulting Staryu. Try as he might, he couldn't get the scholarly eggs to let up on their merciless teasing of his new Pokémon.

Zubat and Vulpix weren't getting along well either. While the bat Pokémon was content to nibble away at a piece of Pokechow, still nestled on Lan's shoulder, Vulpix was continually growling and tearing at Lan's socks. She had a hard time believing that her unaffectionate fox Pokémon was jealous, but couldn't think of what else it could be.

Conrad, soaking wet and behind by a Pokémon, was no where near as jovial as he'd been earlier, and it wasn't just from his dump into the river either. He watched the others interacting with their Pokémon and realized that his goal of becoming a strong Pokémon trainer would never be realized if he couldn't bring Lickitung to heel and get his next Pokémon. He was loath to ask any of the others for help, and was still angry at the teachers for rejecting his proposal.

Erica came back eventually, and from the expression on her face she'd found what she was looking for. Unfortunately for Conrad, she wasn't the type of person who announced what they were doing for the world to know, and he didn't want to ask her. She released Charmeleon from its Pokèball and tossed it a few bits of Pokechow, tossing a few to Gyrados as well to keep it occupied.

Lan abandoned the protection of her socks and let Vulpix savage them, turning her attention to Erica, "So what do you think is wrong with Zubat?"

"No idea." Erica poked the bat Pokémon inquisitively, but all it did was flutter its wings and resettle itself on Lan's shoulder, "I'd be careful if I were you though, it could be anything."

Lan sighed, "Great."

Zubat's condition presented itself on Saturday night, when the usual crowd of girls flocked past Lan's room on their way to Suza's. One moment Zubat was hanging peacefully on a hanger in Lan's closet, and the next it was flying against the door for all it was worth, bashing its body against the solid wood. Lan gave a cry of alarm and tried to pull it back, but it wriggled free of her grip and continued slamming against the door. Right when she was taking its Pokèball from her belt it stopped, tilted its head, and flew calmly back to its hanger.

This pattern continued several times throughout the night, until Lan decided that she had to find out what the problem was. She tied a length of string around Zubat's neck as a primitive leash and opened the door, peering cautiously into the hallway. There was no one there, and Zubat fluttered obediently beside her. She moved down the hall towards the party, and Zubat was fine until one of the girls passed in front of them on her way to the washroom. Instantly Zubat began straining against its leash, its squeaks an uncomfortably high pitch. The girl looked up in alarm and dashed into the bathroom, despite Lan's half-hearted assurances that nothing was wrong.

She decided it was time to pay a visit to Lysander and his Exeggcute, and went down to his room. Both he and Conrad were inside, and Conrad looked mildly annoyed to have someone else there. Lysander grinned and let her in.

"What's going on, Lan? Enjoying your single room?"

"Very much. I think I've found Zubat's problem though; it has to do with girls."

Lysander raised an eyebrow, "You're a girl. So is Erica, and it hasn't shown any problems around you."

"Maybe it only reacts to _feminine_ women," Conrad quipped.

Lan decided, for the good of group harmony, to ignore him, "I was thinking that Exeggcute could talk to it and find out what's going on?"

"Sure," Lysander went over to his desk and extracted the female egg from the group, knowing that she would do what he asked without complaining about rights. He smiled at the blushing egg, "Could you talk to Zubat and see why it keeps flying after girls?"

"Of course," the egg giggled and turned to Zubat, reverting to Pokémon speech and chatting away with Lan's Pokémon. Eventually she switched back to human speech and explained, "Zubat is attracted to the artificial smells that some of the girls here wear. It can't stop smelling it."

"Perfume." Lan sighed, "My Zubat's addicted to perfume."

"I wasn't far off," Conrad put in.

Again, Lan ignored him, "Well, thank you very much Exeggcute. Now I know what I have to work on."

The female egg giggled and flushed, unused to so much attention. The other eggs started causing a ruckus on Lysander's desk, but Lysander turned and innocently stated, "But Exeggcute, you aren't part of a collective, remember? She's getting the individual recognition that she deserves."

Lan giggled and headed back to her room, the leash still firmly in place. On her way past Erica and Suza's room she ran into Suza for the first time in a week. Suza had found some way to fix her hair without cutting it off, and upon seeing Lan Suza turned up her nose and slammed the door to her room closed behind her.

Lan sighed as Zubat continued to tug towards Suza's door, "It's probably for the best that we just ignore one another. If I never have to deal with Suza again it will be too soon. I just wish she wasn't Erica's roommate."

She was about to keep going when she spotted the boy from the woods standing at the end of the hallway. He didn't notice her at first, he was too busy watching the door Suza had disappeared through, but as soon as he did he frowned and departed, the eye-concealing hat still on his head.

Deciding that she could stay up for another little while yet, Lan trotted down the hallway after him. There was only so long he could ignore the fact he was being followed, and then he stopped and spun around quickly.

"What do you want?"

Lan flushed at his abruptness, "I was just wondering how your Pikachu is doing, that's all." What had his name been, again?

"It's the same coward it's always been." He nodded at her Zubat, "What's wrong with that thing?"

"Zubat really likes perfume, that's all. So, what are you…"

"You talk too much." He turned and slouched away, and it wasn't until he was almost around the next corner that Lan remembered his name.

"Ellison!"

He paused, "What?"

She didn't know what else to say that wouldn't have him insulting her, "Never mind."

"Only desperate women call after men for no reason." With that, he was gone.

One part of Lan was deeply insulted, but then she put her hands to her cheeks and felt them flaming. Glad once more that she had her own room, she ran back to it and closed the door firmly. An early night was sounding like a good idea at the moment, but before she went to sleep there was something she had to do.

The drawing took three hours, much longer than anything she'd done before, but she didn't usually draw people and she wanted to get every last detail right. Finally, half an hour after the sounds of parties and laughter had fallen silent, she was finished. She tucked the likeness of Ellison away with a guilty grin and crawled into bed, ignoring the irritated growl Vulpix gave at being moved from its spot in the middle of the covers.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

It seemed to Lan that the more she tried to find Ellison, the less luck she had, but when she was completely unprepared he would appear and she'd be left stammering something that would provoke him into insulting her and then leaving. What made it worse was that she usually saw him just before or just after a wordless yet tense encounter with Suza, and she began to dread what that could mean. She'd never felt the way she did about Ellison with any other boy, certainly she'd never drawn pictures of them and secreted them under her mattress, and to think that he was connected with Suza in any way made her stomach turn.

On Tuesday she received a letter from home; her father wanted to know how she was doing, said that he missed her, and was wondering if she was free to come home for a visit that weekend. As it happened, she had morning class on Friday, meaning that she wouldn't have class until Monday afternoon; plenty of time to go home and then come back.

She was penning her response to him when she paused, deciding she would ask her friends if they wanted to go with her. The break from school might be exactly what they were wishing someone would offer. A hesitant tap on Erica and Suza's door ended with the realization that neither one was in, which was somewhat of a relief. Every time Lan inadvertently emphasized the fact that she and Erica were friends, Suza stepped up her attempts to befriend Erica as well. Apparently even the knowledge that Erica was the glue-conditioner girl meant nothing when it came to stealing friends from Lan.

*

Unaware that Lan was looking for her, Erica was sitting on the ledge she'd scouted on the weekend and holding a piece of Pokechow out with one hand. Below her Gyrados was lying on its back, and as it strained for the food it performed one of the many sit-ups she planned to make it do that day. Every now and then it would grunt as it reached for the food, but filling its belly took precedence over being lazy and it continued to work for its meal.

Beside her, Charmeleon was glaring at its travel mug of coffee suspiciously. For the last three days Erica had been passing it half-decaf coffee, and it was beginning to suspect something. It would never accuse Erica of anything, however, and endured its uncertainty in silence.

Erica had just resolved to leave the decaf out of its next coffee when there was a deafening crash of rocks and earth and something heavy slammed into her back, knocking her from the cliff and into Gyrados' open mouth. It was hard to tell who was more surprised, her or her Gyrados, but thankfully the water snake had fast reflexes and immediately closed off its throat. She climbed free of its mouth and glared up at the ledge, where Charmeleon was snarling at a pink-cheeked Onyx. The Onyx ignored Charmeleon and leaned over the ledge, nudging Erica's head with its muzzle and knocking her over again.

"Onyx! What are you…? Erica?!"

Erica rubbed her already-bruising cheek as Gyrados lifted her free of its mouth. She was sitting on its tongue, and covered in saliva. She heard scrambling footsteps and looked up to see Jericho holding onto the ridge on Onyx's head, concern all over his face.

"Erica, I'm sorry, I didn't think there would be anyone else out here. Onyx goes crazy for redheads."

"And tackles them into the mouths of ravenous Pokémon, I see." Erica was happy to see that both Jericho and Onyx were embarrassed, "You have the best of luck when it comes to lusty Pokémon, don't you?"

"Apparently." Jericho tapped Onyx's head with his foot, and the rock Pokémon obediently lowered its head until Jericho and Erica were level with one another, "Are you making Gyrados do sit-ups?"

"I was," Erica corrected, "but I think I've had enough of that for now. Charmeleon needs some coffee, and-"

"Erica!"

Lan was jogging towards them and waving, and only when she was close did she realize Erica was sitting on her Pokémon's tongue and covered in spit. Neither Erica nor Jericho felt like enlightening her.

"What's up, Lan?"

"Well, I'm going home this weekend to visit my father and show him my Pokémon, and I was wondering if you'd like to come?" Lan turned her hopeful expression to Jericho, "You could come as well, of course. He'd love to meet you."

Jericho shook his head, "I have plans. Look, I should get back to training. Come on, Onyx."

Onyx lowered its head to the ground, its eyes still fixed on Erica and the tinge still in its cheeks. Jericho hopped off and summoned it back into its Pokèball, sending Lan a brief smile before walking off into the woods.

Lan sighed, "I just don't understand, Erica. Why isn't he spending time with us any more?"

Erica shrugged, "He's probably finding friends who share the same interests. You know, silent, depressing people."

"Erica!" Lan was shocked, "That's not…" She sighed, the certainty in Erica's eyes dissuading her from trying to correct her friend, "So what do you think? Would you like to come to my house this weekend?"

Erica hopped to the ground and summoned Gyrados into its ball, waving to Charmeleon to climb down from the ledge, "I sure would. It'll be nice to get away from Suza for the weekend. I have no idea why Jefferson didn't move me once he found out I was the one who glued her hair. By the way," Erica leaned over and fixed her eyes on Lan's upper face, "your eyebrows are coming back pretty fast. Lucky."

Lan sighed, "Lucky but itchy. Still, I'm glad I don't have to draw them on for that much longer. Vulpix keeps chewing on my eyeliner pencils."

*

As soon as their morning class got out on Friday, they rushed back to Lan's room and picked up their bags. Lysander was looking forward to seeing what progress Horace had made since they left, and Erica planned on introducing Gyrados to the ocean, a place she doubted the water snake had ever visited. Conrad was coming as well, much to the surprise of the others, but he insisted that now they had Pokémon they would be challenged by all the trainers between F.O.C.U.S. and Fuchsia. Lan remembered the trip to school and couldn't argue, but Erica remained annoyed that Conrad still wasn't embracing the point of the school.

They were at the gates of the academy when they received a second surprise, but this one an undoubtedly pleasant one. The gate guard informed them that as students of the academy, they were entitled to free bike rentals for the duration of the school year. The tagline that of course they would have to pay for any damages was accepted instantly as they realized that they could make Fuchsia by that night instead of noon the next day.

Lan hesitated, but admitted to herself that she had to tell them before they got started and expected her to keep up, "Erm, I can't really ride a bike…"

Conrad reacted as expected and let out an irritated sigh, while Erica gave her a sympathetic smile.

Lysander tapped a finger against his chin, "I guess I don't have time to give you riding lessons," a sudden grin on his face was all Lan needed to know he'd thought of something, "but that doesn't mean that you can't ride a bike home."

Conrad glared at him, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Here," Lysander took Lan's hand and showed her how to sit on the handlebars of his bike, "we'll just strap your backpack onto the carry rack on the back of my bike."

Erica smirked, "It's pretty obvious these bikes are donated items as well. Mine has a basket." As she said it she released Charmeleon from its Pokèball and held out the coffee she had ready, "You get to ride in style, buddy."

Charmeleon fit itself carefully into the basket, unable to fit until it faced sideways and poked its tail out the metal caging. Far from minding having to sit in a bicycle basket, it looked excited to be there, and once again Erica wondered what kind of a life it had led before being donated to the school. At least the basket wasn't decorated in flowers or anything.

Conrad waited until they were just pushing off before releasing Lickitung from its Pokèball, "Jog beside us, Lickitung. It's good training, and will make you stronger."

Lickitung decided it would rather try a running tackle at Erica instead. Still covered in bruises from her brush with Onyx earlier in the week, she snapped her fingers and Lickitung was immediately engulfed in a well-aimed fire blast.

Lan stared slack-mouthed at Charmeleon, which had gone back to nonchalantly sipping at its coffee, "I don't remember it being able to do that! Erica, what if it evolves soon?"

Erica rubbed Charmeleon's head, "It would certainly be interesting, but I'd prefer to fix the coffee issue first. We're down to three cups a day, aren't we Charmeleon?"

"Char!"

Lan smiled. She knew Erica's plan now, as her friend was hardly one to keep secrets. For the past week Erica had been increasing the decaffeinated content of Charmeleon's coffee until most of the eight cups the Pokémon drank per day were decaf. Then she'd suddenly put the coffee back to full strength, and Charmeleon couldn't handle the concentration as many times as before. Lan marvelled again at how quickly Pokémon could adjust and recover, and wondered how her father's Raichu was doing. Still out of its Pokèball, she hoped.

"Alright, let's go!" Lysander pushed off the ground and started peddling, and Lan gave a squeak as she balanced herself on the handlebars. She was worried that she would mess Lysander up and they would fall over, but his experience with a surfboard came in handy and he just laughed and pedalled faster.

To their right Erica was keeping pace, her headphones around her neck as usual. Conrad was on their left with a scowl on his face, having recalled his Lickitung after its virtually instant defeat.

As the day went on Lan became more and more worried that Lysander would be exhausted, but even though the sweat shone on his forehead he never said anything about either taking a break or switching her to Conrad's bike instead. She was about to suggest the break herself when they biked around a corner and came to an abrupt halt.

Someone had blocked the entire road with brambles and small branches, and even as the four approached to see how best to get around they were ambushed. Seven children leapt from the sides of the road, each one with dirty knees and shorts that would be indecent on an older boy or girl.

Their leader was distinguished by a bright orange cape, and he pointed a finger at Erica, "You've fallen into our clever trap. If you want to pass, you have to fight all of us in a Pokémon battle!"

Erica shook her head, "Not a chance. It'd be a waste of time and we still have a long way to go."

"Oh yeah? Well then prepare to defend yourself!"

The children all threw their Pokèballs, and assorted Caterpie and Weedle popped out. The bug Pokémon wriggled towards Erica, but hesitated when they saw Charmeleon. The fire Pokémon turned to Erica, its expression clearly asking whether or not it was supposed to attack, and she sighed.

"Fine, but this isn't going to be pretty. Charmeleon, firespin."

It hopped from the bicycle basket and spewed fire from its mouth. Burning bugs rolled around on the ground in front of them before their eyes went into spirals and they fainted. All except the leader's Weedle, which headed straight for the bramble wall and dove in. Everyone gave a cry of alarm as the barrier immediately caught on fire, and the thick blaze headed for the tree line.

"Nice one, Erica," Conrad commented dryly.

She shot him a dirty look and removed her second Pokèball from her belt, "Smother that fire, Gyrados!"

As she threw it, the lead boy asked, "Doesn't she mean put it out?"

Gyrados popped out of the Pokèball above the fire and fell, its tremendous bulk putting the fire out instantly. It turned to Erica and wiggled its tongue, and after rolling her eyes she tossed it a piece of Pokechow and put it back in its Pokèball.

"I meant what I said." She walked to the smouldering pile and fished out the comatose Weedle, "The next time you do something this stupid, expect to have someone call the cops. It may even be me."

They scampered back into the trees, leaving the four travellers to find their way around the charred pile and continue to Fuchsia. They arrived as the sun was half-set over the water, and most of the families were inside for dinner. Lan felt an intense sense of familiarity wash over her, and she sighed deeply as they rode through the town. She knew everything and everyone here, and none of them would dream of doing the things that students at school did. Sixteen years in Fuchsia, and not one case of laxatives in drinks or forced makeovers. Or superglue in conditioner.

As she thought this Lan glanced over at Erica, wondering what kind of an upbringing she'd had to think of a revenge like that. Not one like Lan's, that was for sure. Still, Erica didn't bear her any grudges and she was glad to have a female friend. Living in Fuchsia, Lan's only real friend had been her father, and when she'd left three weeks earlier he'd worried over her ability to make friends. Now she was bringing three home to meet him.

"_That's_ your house?"

Where Lysander had been impressed and jealous, the corner of Conrad's nose was beginning to twitch upwards. Lan sighed, thinking for the fifth time that day that it had been a mistake to invite him home. She just hoped that her father was actually ready to take them in tonight instead of the following day.

She knocked on the front door, a sudden paranoia of the broken washing machine sweeping over her. It had never truly come up in conversation what kind of lifestyle Erica or Conrad were used to, but it was almost certainly not how Lan lived. Even Lysander lived near the ocean, and was used to the way the sea salt in the air had a habit of getting into things.

The door opened, and Lan found that her head was facing ninety degrees in the wrong angle. Instead of meeting her father's eyes, she was staring into space as Raichu dashed past her and latched onto Lysander's pant leg. His Exeggcute, stored in their respective backpack pockets, immediately began interrogating Lysander as to why a mouse was spooning his leg, none more vehemently than the female egg.

Erica walked up beside Lan and peered into the house, "Wow. Your dad's a real scholar, isn't he?"

Lan beamed at the praise, "He sure is! He just needs a motivator to stay with him and he could be the face of Pokémon research in all of Kanto!"

Conrad seemed interested despite himself, "So what does he study about Pokémon, anyway?"

"Everything!" Lan opened the door all the way, meeting Conrad's scepticism with a wide grin, "It's true, come inside and see all of daddy's work! He investigates any thought about Pokémon that enters his head."

Conrad let his rental bike drop onto the ground and walked up the steps, remembering his manners at the last moment and letting Lan enter her home first. He cut ahead of Erica though.

While Conrad and Erica were staring around the interior, Lan searched the building for signs of her father. He hadn't left a note or anything, but she wasn't too worried. What _did_ worry her were the mounds of papers building up around the room. From the miniature broom and pink apron at the side of the main room she could tell that Raichu was keeping up the cleaning zealously, but the mouse Pokémon couldn't read and didn't know what to do with the papers besides stack them.

Lysander came into the room with Raichu in his arms and sighed at the papers, "I guess the research consultant went back to the museum and took Horace's topic devotion with her. Let's clean these up before he gets home."

Lan nodded and moved to the largest stack, but just as she was reaching out to take a paper the stack exploded upwards and her father leapt out, "Surprise!"

She screamed. She couldn't help it, too many things had been leaping out at her to do her harm lately. True to form, Horace completely ignored her terror and scooped her into his arms, squeezing the wind from her instantly.

"How was your trip, sweetheart? Home so soon, I wasn't really expecting you until tomorrow! We need to celebrate!"

He noticed Erica and Conrad and tucked Lan under his arm, striding across the room with his free hand out, "Horace Reeves. Are you Jericho or Conrad?"

"C-Conrad." Conrad shook the offered hand, but couldn't quite get over the fact that Horace was carrying his daughter around like a beach ball, "Conrad Dole."

"Wonderful to meet you! And you must be Erica," no handshake this time; Horace wrapped a massive arm around Erica's shoulders and crush-hugged her to his side, "I'm so happy my little girl finally made a girl friend! It's an essential step to achieving a normal and healthy adulthood, you know."

When Erica's frantic scrambling to get free could no longer be ignored, he released her and set Lan down as well, "Now, how about some dinner? There's a wonderful new restaurant in town that I think we should all try."

*

Saturday morning dawned on a packed lighthouse, and not everyone in it was happy with their sleeping arrangements. While everyone agreed that it was silly to make Lan sleep anywhere but her own bed when visiting, that then meant that Conrad and Lysander had to share the double bed. Lysander didn't mind, but Conrad was up in arms. The only reason the two boys ended up sharing was because Erica offered to sleep with Lysander and Horace almost had an apoplectic fit. Horace took his usual couch, and Erica slept on the couch opposite him.

When it came time for breakfast they decided to eat outside and introduce Horace to their Pokémon. He'd been asking after them all night, but all four students had an unspoken agreement that it would be better for everyone if they waited until they'd adjusted to their surroundings before calling out their Pokémon. Disciplining was easier on familiar ground; that was one of Principal Jefferson's top rules.

"I must admit, I'm in suspense." Even sitting cross-legged on the beach Horace loomed large enough to shade half the picnic blanket, "Three weeks and you haven't told me about any of the Pokémon, Lan dear. What suspense indeed!"

Lysander grinned, "I think you should go first, Lan."

Lan nodded and took out her two Pokèballs, grateful that Lysander subtly moved the chew toy into position. She didn't think Vulpix would try anything, as it rarely heard the call of the wild any more, but she didn't want it to misbehave in front of her father. It would reflect badly on her. She released both at the same time, and grinned at her father's immediate praise. He commented on the brightness of Vulpix's coat and the impressive wing-to-body ratio on her Zubat. Then he decided to take a closer look at the fox.

"Aren't you just a cute little thing. Oh look, Lan dear, it's being friendly."

"Daddy…" She closed her mouth, not bothering to point out that her Vulpix was biting him as viciously as it could bring itself to with her spray bottle so close.

"I'd try wiggling more." Erica's comment was seemingly to the air, but Vulpix immediately struggled for all it was worth and Horace put it down. Erica continued to stir the instant coffee she was making, and when it was finished she took out Charmeleon's Pokèball and released it.

Charmeleon got a single step towards the coffee before Horace lunged across the blanket and scooped it up, "A Charmeleon! I have a paper researching the heat increases between the three stages!"

Not one for violence, Charmeleon merely cast a longing and slightly tearful look at its coffee as Horace continued to expand on the details of his half-finished paper. Erica smiled and got up, walking down to the edge of the water and throwing her second Pokèball as far as she could out into the sea. The wave Gyrados made as it hit the water was still large enough to soak Erica to the knees, but at least it didn't wash out the picnic. She tossed it a few pieces of Pokechow and returned to the picnic, aware that with every small wave the Gyrados floated slightly closer to shore, wanting food but too lazy to swim for it.

Exeggcute and Staryu came out next, and Horace went absolutely crazy over Exeggcute. From the moment the first sentence of human speech came from one of the eggs Horace was captivated, and soon most of the eggs were sitting somewhere on his large frame and gabbing about statistics and other minute facts that fascinated man and egg alike. Only the female egg stayed close to Lysander, holding a butter knife in her mouth and glaring threats at Raichu. Lysander chose to stay impartial and pulled his Staryu over, fastening a seashell sticker he'd retrieved from Lan's room onto one of the Pokémon's prongs.

"There. Now just keep that end up for as long as you can. That end is the best looking."

Staryu clearly didn't believe him, and while Horace discussed the merits of totalitarian society with the majority of the Exeggcute Lysander, Lan and Erica all sat around Staryu and decided which way up was the most flattering. Conrad sat in a huff and munched on toast, the only member of the group without a Pokémon on display. It was ridiculous, in his opinion, that the others were trying to decide which of five identical points was the best one to face upwards.

Finally Horace cleared his throat and nodded at Conrad, "Say, son, don't you have any Pokémon to show? I'm sure they'd love to be out on a day like today."

Conrad frowned, "My Pokémon is too aggressive to be around the others without fighting. It doesn't… huh?"

Erica was holding out Charmeleon's harness while sipping her juice, and Conrad took it without another word. If she didn't want to offer it with words, he wouldn't thank her with them either.

Obtaining the harness was easy, but getting it on Lickitung was a challenge. Conrad walked a ways away from the others and wrestled with his Pokémon for five minutes, frustrated yells becoming more and more frequent as it slapped him with its hands and tongue. Impatient to learn the length and volume of Lickitung's tongue, Horace eventually got up and strode over to the wrestling duo. He scooped the Lickitung up and held it firmly while Conrad slipped the harness onto its body, and then set it down. It didn't charge anyone, so embarrassed was it to be wearing the baby harness. From its seat halfway down the long side of the blanket, Charmeleon snickered at the pink Pokémon's misfortune and its own luck.

"Well, well, well." Horace cast an appreciative look around the group at all the Pokémon, "You children certainly have a variety on your hands. Might I take this opportunity to compare my notes with your specimens?"

While Horace set up a temporary workstation on the beach blanket, the others made a quick trip up to the lighthouse and changed into their bathing suits. Conrad made a snide remark about Erica actually having a shape under her baggy t-shirt, she retaliated with an offhand comment about his fish belly and noodle arms, and Lysander just rolled his eyes at Lan. Lan giggled and away they went.

At first they were worried that the Pokémon who couldn't play in the surf would get upset, but they quickly saw that this wasn't the case. Exeggcute immediately put its heads together and sketched some blueprints in the sand, and soon it had put the other Pokémon and Horace to work building a sand castle to rival all others.

"The fox will be in charge of providing the raw materials." Each of the eggs was wearing a construction hat, and no one knew where they'd come from. When Vulpix tilted its head in confusion, the egg clarified, "Dig."

"You there, twitching penta-point," another egg looked up at Staryu, "you'll make an ideal mixer for our mud."

Two eggs hopped onto Charmeleon's shoulders and two more on the shoulders of Horace, and they rapped out instructions on where they wanted Horace to pile the dirt and mud. Charmeleon, with its sharp claws, was in charge of sculpting the lumps of dirt into artistic towers and walls.

Lickitung was tied to a post further up the beach and muttering to itself in Poke-tongue, while Zubat roosted on the cliffs above it. That left Gyrados, who the children used for their own game. It was essentially Push Off the Dock, only instead of a floating dock they used the obese Pokémon.

After being thrown into the waves twice as much as anyone else, Lan offered to sit out and help with the sandcastle. Lysander protested, and they switched to teams instead.

Erica looked over at Conrad and wrinkled her nose, "Why do I always wind up partnered with you?"

Conrad glared at her, saltwater dripping from his hair, "I was thinking the same thing."

"Come on, you two." Lan sighed, "I'm the weakest and Lysander's the strongest, so we have to go together or else one of the teams would be handicapped. You two are about the same strength."

"I'm way stronger than Erica!" Conrad blustered. The others ignored him.

"Alright, let the battle for the Gyrados back begin!" Lysander announced dramatically.

Lan hung back while Lysander charged them both, his feet sinking into Gyrados' squishy belly with every step. Her own weight was too light for her to sink.

Conrad leapt forward and grappled with Lysander while Erica circled and tackled the back of Lysander's knees. Lan immediately jumped into the fray and soon all four were so knotted together there came a protesting shout of pain whenever one of them tried to pull free.

"Don't pull that way, you twit! You'll dislocate my elbow!" Conrad snapped.

"Oh, I'm so sorry." Erica planted a heel into what she thought was Conrad's side, "That better?"

"Ow! Erica, that's me!" Lysander laughed despite her heel digging into him, the only one who was enjoying the tangle.

"Ah! Then I _am_ sorry!"

Lan's right cheek was being pressed deeper and deeper into Gyrados' fat by Conrad's back, and she managed to muffle out, "I think I'm being crushed."

Conrad twisted his head around and looked down at her in surprise, "How'd you get down there?"

"Alright, enough is enough." Erica pulled her head free of Lan's feet and called up to Gyrados, "Roll over!"

The fall and submersion in the water untangled them, and soon they were all sitting on the sand and getting their breath back. The sandcastle was almost finished, the eggs guiding Charmeleon to make the final artistic slices through the damp dirt, when Lickitung finally tugged free of the post and charged, ploughing into the castle.

Dirt and eggs went everywhere, and while the Pokémon castigated Lickitung for its brutish nature Conrad crossed his arms and declared, "At least we all know now that I'm stronger than Erica."

"Poor, weak me," Erica dramatized, "I'll bet I couldn't lift Conrad and toss him into the ocean even if Lysander helped me."

"Wait, what? No!"

It was too late. Conrad struggled all the way, but Erica took his wrists, Lysander took his legs, and in he went. Lan watched them with a happy smile and placed her hand absentmindedly on Vulpix's back. It was so busy snarling at Lickitung it didn't even notice.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

They barely made it back to school on time for their Monday afternoon classes, due largely to Lysander finding Raichu secreted in his backpack halfway back to F.O.C.U.S. Not having its Pokèball with them, they had to bike all the way back to Fuchsia and deposit the weeping mouse into the hands of its neglectful owner before leaving once again. Horace had offered to trade the Raichu for the Exeggcute, and Lysander had been the only complete one of the four not in favour of the idea. The eggs had squabbled amongst themselves, half wanting to stay with Lysander and the other half more interested in Horace and his research. Eventually Lysander enlisted Lan to help him explain that the Exeggcute were a part of his project, and he couldn't just trade them off for another Pokémon. The teary Raichu made matters worse by crying incessantly, its paws clutching its apron tightly.

The talk in the halls was once again about which Pokémon the students would get this Friday, as it was coming up on the two week marker. Conrad immediately flew into a training schedule frenzy, determined that he would get his second Pokémon this time. His pride couldn't afford for him to only have one Pokémon while the others moved onto their third, and by all accounts their third was definitely within range. Erica had her weight loss program for Gyrados laid out crystal clear, and Charmeleon had shown exactly the amount of progress she'd predicted it to since the last time she'd shown off its schedule. Lan's Vulpix still growled when she picked it up, but knew enough to act happy with the examiners; she'd bribed it with a t-bone steak last time, and intended to do it again. Her Zubat was absolutely fine most of the time, but as soon as a girl with a particularly strong perfume wandered past it flew into her face and wouldn't leave her alone, and that was cause for concern. Lysander's Exeggcute were fine, and his Staryu was down to switching between only two points. The self-loathing star was looking happier than it had, as far as they could tell; it was difficult without any facial features for them to look at.

Mr. Hartog reminded all of them of the camping trip coming up on Thursday night and encouraged them to make friends with the students in the White Pod, as the two Pods would be going together.

They left the classroom, and Lan frowned, "I don't think I know anyone in the White Pod. Is that the one Suza's in?"

"No, she's in Blue." Erica released Charmeleon and smirked at Lan, "Thank goodness for small mercies, right?"

"No kidding. I wouldn't want to spend the whole night looking over my shoulder every two seconds instead of enjoying myself." Lan adjusted her glasses, "I'm going to conform to the conversation topic of the rest of the school. Excited for the new Pokémon?"

"Not really." Erica shrugged off their shocked expressions, "I mean, I know I'm going to get a new one in four days, but I don't feel that I've done enough with Gyrados yet. I have its training program, yes, but it just doesn't seem to me that I've earned another one so soon."

"Oh." Lan considered her Zubat, "I'm not sure if I'll be getting a third Pokémon or not. I really haven't made any progress with Zubat. In fact, I don't even know where I should start. How do you cure a perfume addiction?"

"Is it only ladies' perfume that it reacts to? Not men's cologne?" Lysander asked.

"Yes, only ladies' perfume, and not the cheap stuff either. I tried some dollar store stuff on it and Zubat didn't react at all." Lan noticed Conrad fidgeting, "What is it, Conrad?"

"No one's asked me my training schedule for Lickitung, or if I think I'll get another Pokémon this Friday."

"That's because you always think you'll get another Pokémon, even if your training schedule is awful," Erica pointed out.

"Well I have a better one this time!" He snapped.

She rolled her eyes, "Does it involve withholding food until it's more cooperative?"

Conrad's face twisted in fury and he turned on Lysander, "You told?!"

Lysander shook his head mutely, but the look on his face indicated that he thought as much of Conrad's plan as Erica did.

"You know what? I consider myself to be a patient person, but you sir," Erica rammed an accusing finger against Conrad's nose, squishing it sideways, "have just worn my patience out. These Pokémon aren't here to battle, they're here because other trainers who _wanted_ to battle them couldn't, and they need treatment. Your Lickitung has a one-track mind; all it wants to do is battle strong Pokémon, and it doesn't want any help doing so. You're supposed to be helping it get back to normal by introducing it to other things, but if anything you're just furthering its negative development. You don't think that its previous trainer tried the starvation technique? So listen carefully." She leaned in and stressed every word, "Try. Something. Else."

There was silence as the group stared at her, and finally Conrad's throat began moving. If it was possible for him to vomit the words, he would have, "What do you suggest?"

"Lickitung likes competition, so give it something else to compete in." Erica took Charmeleon's offered paw and headed for the cafeteria, "Now don't talk to me again until you have two Pokémon."

*

Lan was deeply immersed in her training schedule for Zubat while other students were heading to the cafeteria for dinner. She'd brought her food to her room, and wasn't planning on going to bed until she had a decent idea of how to go about fixing her bat Pokémon. So far the sheet was empty save for the margin, which was full of doodles.

Zubat was hanging from her desk lamp and squeaking softly, trying to motivate her even though it didn't know what she was doing. Vulpix was napping lightly on the bed, its paws twitching as it chased dream-Rattata.

Lan set her pen down and rubbed her temples, frustrated that an idea wasn't coming to her. She should have spent the weekend at home asking her father for ideas, because even if he wouldn't see it to completion it would give her the kick start she needed to work something out on her own.

A knock on the door was a welcome distraction, and when she opened it Erica held up a bowl of ice cream, "Brain food."

Lan took the dessert and moved back into the room, slumping down in her chair, "I have no idea what to do, Erica. If I don't come up with a proposal, I can't get a new Pokémon!"

"That might not be a bad thing. The last thing you want to do is rush and do a bad job on the ones you have."

"I suppose so." Lan suppressed some jealousy at Erica's Pokémon, knowing that it would take a lot of sweat and frustration to get Gyrados back in shape, "The problem is that I can't think of a place to start. How on earth can I get it to stop being addicted to _perfume_?" She blinked and pointed down at the drink Charmeleon was holding, "Is that tea?"

"Yeah. Charmeleon's finding that its coffee's taste is changing too much for its liking. The tea is more reliable, isn't it Charmeleon?"

Charmeleon nodded and sipped away, stopping only to let out contented sighs.

Erica smiled, "I really struck it lucky with Charmeleon. It needed a trainer that was laidback and good at schedules, and I wanted a Pokémon that wasn't hyper. So far I've got what I wanted with both." The watch on her wrist beeped, and she got back to her feet, "I've got to go. Gyrados needs exercise again." She paused at the door and gave Lan a wink, "You'll think of something. Maybe not in time to get a Pokémon this week, but you'll definitely think of something. You always do."

She made sure to close the door behind her in case a perfumed girl walked past and headed down the hallway, Charmeleon at her heels. It wanted to exercise as well, showing solidarity with both its trainer and its fellow Pokémon. They headed to the storeroom first to stock up on Pokechow, and then turned for one of the arenas. It wasn't the one she'd battled Conrad in, but it looked incredibly similar.

While Charmeleon finished its tea Erica removed a portable boom box from her backpack and slid a high-energy CD inside. Once it was set up she released Gyrados from its Pokèball, making sure to throw the ball far enough away so the obese Pokémon wouldn't crush her.

She tossed it a piece of Pokechow before instructing it to roll belly-up. Used to this practise after being exposed to it for a week, Gyrados did as it was told, but looked confused that she wasn't sitting above it.

"Not this time, Gyrados. We're all going to exercise together, and only take a break every ten minutes. Ready?"

Its downturned mouth assured her that it wasn't, but she didn't give it a chance to argue. Gyrados was lazy, that was true, but it still wanted to please her and it could hardly refuse with its teammate already doing stretches.

They'd barely gone through one song when someone stopped the CD, and Erica glared over at the boom box in annoyance. Standing there was Suza, and beside her was a boy with a hat covering his eyes.

Suza giggled and twirled a curl with her finger, "Erica, I couldn't help but notice what you're doing with your Pokémon. Might I be allowed to join you?"

Erica's gaze shifted to Suza's obese Machop, chewing open-mouthed on a rice ball, and she decided that Suza's action plan hadn't been approved. The Pokémon was as fat as ever, and she was willing to bet it hadn't been out of its ball more than a dozen times. She also wondered why Suza was being so sickeningly sweet, concluding that it must be because the boy was present.

Suza's overly-sweet smile faltered at the length of time it was taking Erica to reply, but she hitched it back up and continued, "Of course I understand if you just want this to be some bonding time between your Pokémon and you. I was just hoping that there would be someone on campus with enough dedication to exercise that I could help my Machop get back in shape."

She was good, Erica had to give her that. The boy was now staring at Erica, a small frown on his face, and Erica sighed, "I don't see the harm. Do you have something to exercise in? Your gym clothes?"

"Oh, heavens no! Those things are so distasteful! But I do have a little something in my bag, just let me go and change." She turned to the boy for the first time, "Will you be wanting to join us, Ellison?"

He nodded, mute, and walked into the boys' bathroom. Apparently they'd _both_ brought exercising clothes.

Ellison was the first one out of the change room, and he took his place on the floor with a space left in between him and Erica clearly meant for Suza.

Erica raised an eyebrow, "What about your Pokémon?"

"Pikachu is still afraid of everything. It can't be released here."

Erica glanced back toward her backpack, where Charmeleon's baby harness was sitting in the bottom. Conrad had tossed the harness back at her post sea-toss, along with a comment that she decided it was better she didn't remember. She had no intent on using it on Charmeleon again, but it was good to have in case she got another Pokémon that needed it.

Charmeleon read her mind and trotted over to get it, presenting the harness to a suspicious Ellison.

Erica smiled, "Why don't you adjust it to the size your Pikachu is first, and then I can hold it while you put the harness on?"

Ellison smiled as well, a sight that Lan would later turn green with envy about, "That sounds like a good idea."

It took quite a while to get the harness on, for Pikachu didn't stop squeaking and struggling for an instant. Several minor electric shocks later, the harness was finally on, and Erica handed the frantic mouse back to Ellison.

He set it on the ground and held tight to the handle as the mouse took off. If it wasn't terrified it would have been amusing to watch the slack tighten and literally take Pikachu off its feet. Ellison coughed into his fist, "I'm sorry about… you know…"

"I have no idea."

"When I was putting the harness on Pikachu, I accidentally…" he waved a hand in the area of Erica's chest.

"Oh. Don't worry about it, you did what you had to do to put the harness on. It's not like you were aiming for them."

"Aiming for what?" Suza was finally out of the girls' bathroom, and dressed like an 80s exercise program host, all in varying shades of pink from the leotard to the leg warmers.

"Never mind." Erica reset the exercise CD and clapped her hands at Gyrados, who had gone to sleep, "Let's lose some weight!"

*

For all the students going on the Thursday night camping trip their proposals were due Wednesday night, and Lan waited in line with sadness. They were all required to take their Pokémon in for examination every two weeks, and she wasn't looking forward to hearing the examiner tell her she'd made no progress on Zubat. She already knew it.

When she got to the front of the line and was ushered through into one of the examination rooms, she was dismayed to see that her examiner was female. Zubat's problem would become apparent as soon as it was released.

"Well then, Miss. Reeves, let's see what progress you've made with your…" she consulted Lan's file, "Vulpix and Zubat."

Lan couldn't have been more proud with the way Vulpix behaved for the examiner. Steak bribe aside, Vulpix was doing its best not to get Lan in trouble, though she could just imagine the violent thoughts going through the Vulpix's head as the examiner asked it to do a back flip.

When it came time to show her Zubat, Lan cleared her throat, "Ma'am, I don't think that's a good idea. I haven't made any progress with Zubat's perfume addiction, and I don't want it to attack you."

"Miss. Reeves, I am a Pokémon Project examiner, and you will show me your second project."

Lan hung her head, "Yes Ma'am."

Zubat was released, and it immediately flew at the examiner's face and fluttered less than an inch away, its small tongue darting out and taking tiny licks at her nose and cheeks. The woman screamed and batted her hands at Zubat, but the Pokémon avoided them easily and continued fluttering around her and licking her. As Lan watched mutely, Zubat's cure came to her, and she quickly scribbled it down on a piece of paper. Only when she was done did she summon Zubat back into its Pokèball and stand there with a look of absolute innocence and shock on her face.

The examiner's face went purple with rage, and just as she was about to ream Lan out on her delayed recalling of her Pokémon Lan held out the paper, "As you can see, Zubat still needs plenty of training, Ma'am. Here's my proposal."

The woman snatched the paper up and scanned Lan's writing quickly, "Put distasteful oils and tastes on your face, along with perfume, so your Pokémon associates the two and stops." She glared at Lan, the purple not receding in the least, "Very well. You may go."

Lan left the room with a massive grin on her face. It didn't matter that she wasn't going to get another Pokémon on Friday; she knew what to do with Zubat.

*

Most of the students gathering on the main green Thursday afternoon weren't in the mood for a hike. They'd had a particularly zealous workout that morning in gym class, and it didn't make things better that Coach Belle was coming on the camping trip as well. He gave Lan an enthusiastic whap across the back and commented on her wonderful enthusiasm, following up with the expectation that she would be at the front of the hike.

She waited until he'd moved off to enthusiastically harass someone else before groaning, "I can barely stand, how am I supposed to hike up hills?"

"Well I'm not carrying you," Conrad sneered. He went to add a barb at Erica, but remembered that she was ignoring him and decided to save it for when she was listening again.

"Okay kids, let's get hiking!" Coach Belle strode off across the lawn and they followed.

An hour into the hike there were two separate groups in the hikers. Up front were Coach Belle and the enthusiasts, of which Conrad was one. He was mostly up there because he didn't want anyone to think he was weaker than they were. Jericho was up front as well, his usual silent self, and Lan was glad they were all going camping together. Maybe she could convince him to start hanging out with the rest of the group again.

The second group was headed by Mr. Hartog, who was perfectly content to stroll along behind the group with something to prove. Lan stayed close by him and listened to the talk he was giving about the local flora, her Vulpix at her heels and holding a Lan-coloured stick in its mouth. She didn't want to know where it got it from.

Roughly two thirds of the Green and White Pods had at least one of their Pokémon out, and Lan scanned the variety with interest. It was when her eyes caught on a Pikachu in a familiar baby harness that she eased herself away from her teacher and trailed back to the end of the group.

Ellison's Pokémon was staying as far away from him and the others as the leash allowed, but at least it wasn't climbing trees or getting the leash stuck in bushes. Lan fell into step with Ellison as smoothly as she could, and it didn't take long for him to notice her. Unfortunately, that noticing was accompanied by the downturn of the mouth that she was getting used to seeing when he was about to acknowledge her presence.

"What do you want?"

"I'm just out here to enjoy nature," Lan tried to picture famous actresses, and think of what they would do in a situation like this.

"Well enjoy it somewhere else; your stupid Pokémon is scaring my Pikachu."

Lan thought this was a tad unfair, seeing as how it was scared of everything, but she shrugged and recalled Vulpix into its Pokèball, "So how's your training with Pikachu going?"

The frown deepened and he sneered, "Oh, it's going wonderfully, as you can see."

"I was just making conversation, there's no need to be rude."

"Go _converse_ with someone who cares." He lifted his hand and tugged the brim of his hat down further, cutting off her view of his face completely.

If she was Erica, Lan imagined that she'd either stomp on Ellison's foot or run at his Pikachu waving her arms and screaming, "booga booga booga!", but she wasn't, so she moved away through the group and let Vulpix out once they were a safe distance from Ellison. Her fox Pokémon looked up at her and shook its head, confirming her suspicions that she was a wimp. Tonight was suddenly looking less fun than it had that morning.

*

By the time they arrived at camp, most of the students were groaning and rubbing their feet. Lysander set up his tent with a zest that had most of the girls in the group swarming him and asking for him to do theirs as well. He helped gladly, unaware that they were admiring his bum every time he bent over to put the pegs in the ground.

Lan was glad Erica seemed as hopeless at tent construction as she was, and Erica raised her spirits with her exaggerated frustration at the tent. Several times she raised the instructions, deliberately holding them upside down, scratched her head, turned the instructions sideways, gave an elated "ah _ha_!" and went back to doing exactly what she'd done before.

Conrad had his tent done, but he wasn't helping anyone. Lan thought that one of the tent legs wasn't clicked into place properly, but when she'd told him he'd waved her away and gone back to lounging on one of the logs around their fire pit. Lan was almost ready to throw something at him when Jericho approached with the clear intent to help her and Erica. He swung his leg out on the way and kicked the weak spot in Conrad's tent, causing the entire thing to fold in on itself. He ignored Conrad's furious splutters and continued on, amusement in his eyes.

"Here, let me help." Rather than just do it for them, Jericho talked them through it until they were standing around a competently built tent.

Lan used this opportunity to talk to him, "Are you enjoying school, Jericho? We haven't really seen you except in class."

He sighed, "Lan, I already told you why I'm not hanging around that much any more. I've just been spending a lot of time with my Pokémon, that's all."

"Does Onyx still tackle redheads?" Erica put in.

His cheeks coloured, "Yes. I don't know how to get it to stop; it doesn't know its own strength."

Lan shuddered, "That's usually the problem with rock Pokémon."

"Hey asshole!" Conrad stormed over and glared at Lysander, "What's the big idea, messing up my tent?"

"It wasn't sound." Jericho nodded at the girls, "I'll see you later."

Conrad braced his fists on his hips and didn't stop glowering until Jericho was out of sight, "I'm glad he isn't associating with us that much any more. Imagine, thinking that Pokémon trainers are all a bunch of apathetic opportunists!"

Lan could sense that Erica wanted to respond with a biting comment, but she stayed true to her word that she wasn't going to speak to Conrad until he had two Pokémon, and said nothing.

Once all the tents were up, Mr. Hartog and Coach Belle gathered the students together and passed out disposable cameras. Their assignment was to partner up with someone from the opposite Pod and take pictures of as many of the geographic formations and plants on their lists as they could. The winning pair would get the last class of the day tomorrow off to claim their next PokeProject earlier.

Lan hoped that the teachers would just assign them into pairs, but it looked like they would have to choose partners for themselves. She searched around for Ellison, a part of her wondering why she was setting herself up for another string of insults and ego deflation, when she saw him talking with Erica. It made sense that he would ask to be Erica's partner, as Lan was fairly sure the harness his Pikachu was wearing was Erica's, but she was jealous anyway. It wasn't even that Erica knew Lan liked Ellison and was deliberately being his partner; Lan hadn't told anyone about her infatuation except her Vulpix and Zubat.

"Hello."

Lan felt a tap on her shoulder and turned. Standing there was a girl dressed in soft pinks and purples complete with a beaded heart pendant and shampoo commercial-quality dark brown locks. She looked like she belonged in a Celadon department store, not the middle of the wilderness; there wasn't a speck of dirt on her.

The girl smiled brightly, "My name's Nikki. I'm from the White Pod, do you want to be partners?"

Lan was momentarily speechless as she took in the fact that someone actually looked good in pink shorts, but then her tongue caught up with her and she stammered, "I'm Lan. I'd love to be partners; I don't know anyone from the White Pod."

"Well I don't know anyone from Green, so there you go!" Nikki giggled and took Lan's wrist, leading her with determination through the milling crowd to the teachers. Lan let herself be led, unable to believe that a girl she'd never met had singled her out to be her partner. As soon as she thought this, she became suspicious; what if this was one of Suza's friends?

After receiving their binoculars, clipboard, and camera, Lan and Nikki headed out onto a trail. Many of the other students were deciding to wait until the following morning, but Nikki was determined to get her second Pokémon early.

"I'll be getting one for sure. Look at the progress my Mankey has made!" She released her Pokémon and gave it an encouraging smile as it scampered around her and Lan in several figure eights, made a lap around the nearest tree, and then returned. "Mankey had Dendrophobia, but now it doesn't mind the forest at all!"

"That's great!" Lan hesitated about showing her Pokémon, but knew that Vulpix wouldn't cause problems and let it out. She hesitated over Zubat, and finally asked, "Nikki? Are you wearing any perfume?"

"Not today, I heard that bugs are attracted to perfume and I'd rather not have any bites."

"It's not just bugs," Lan explained about her Zubat, "but if you're not wearing any, I'd like to let it out."

"Of course. Hey, there's a little freshwater spring!" Nikki waved her hand at Lan, "Get in the picture with me! Mankey, you're in charge of the camera."

Mankey waited while they climbed over the spring and knelt down in front of it, then snapped a picture and snorted happily. Lan waited until they were back on the path before asking Nikki the question that wouldn't leave her mind.

"Hey Nikki? Do you know who Suza is?"

"Oh dear, I hope you two aren't friends."

"Friends?! She put laxatives in my tea, tripped me down stairs multiple times, and made one of my best friends stop associating with the rest of my friends!" Lan let out an angry huff, "Definitely not friends."

Nikki giggled, "Well good! Do you not know what's been going on between the White Pod and the Blue Pod?" At Lan's shake of the head, Nikki enlightened her, "Basically, all the girls of the Blue Pod are a bunch of posers that try too hard and spend too much to be fashionable. They think that the more money you toss around and the more parties you throw, the more popular and socially desirable you are."

"And the White Pod…?"

"We're what the Blue Pod is trying and failing to be," the sparkle of her eye and wrinkle of her nose took the snobbery from Nikki's words, but Lan could tell that Nikki sincerely believed what she was saying. Lan didn't doubt it either, recalling the outfit overloaded with strawberry patterns that Suza constantly boasted was her favourite.

They continued walking along the path and collecting more pictures, and were about to turn back with Nikki's eye caught on something. She grabbed Lan's wrist in the same manner as before and wove flawlessly through the thick undergrowth until she reached what she'd seen from the path; the entrance to a cave. Both girls peered inside, but they couldn't see more than fifteen feet past the entrance.

"Let's get a picture of us outside the entrance," Nikki suggested.

Lan hesitated, "We're not going in, are we? No one knows we're here."

"No, no, we won't go in, but we should come back next weekend or something. What do you say?"

Lan grinned for the camera and then nodded, "It sounds like an adventure."

*

"You found what?"

"A cave, Erica! It doesn't look like anyone else knows it's there, we didn't see any other footprints near the entrance." Lan slid her hotdog off its cooking stick and into a bun, "I'll bet there are all sorts of amazing things in there."

"Yeah, like rock Pokémon," Erica quipped.

After dinner they sat out on one of the nearby hills and looked up at the sky, their Pokémon lounging around them. Zubat was wearing its leash, and hanging on a cane-shaped stick Lan had found and stuck in the ground. Vulpix and Charmeleon were starting to nod off to sleep, their heads dropping onto each others' backs. Lysander joined them after a while, and as soon as he released Exeggcute the eggs began giving the whole group an astronomy lesson.

In between constellations Lan looked over at Lysander, "Where's Conrad?"

"Spending the evening socializing with his White Pod partner. He told me that he'd finally found someone with the same opinion of things as him, and a girl none the less."

"Ugh, in that case I don't want to meet her." Erica closed her eyes, "The last thing we need is _another_ Conrad. The gender doesn't make a difference."

Lan smiled, "My partner is really nice, and she doesn't like Suza either. Apparently the White Pod and the Blue Pod are in some kind of fashion war or something."

Lysander sighed, "Can't we just put that whole episode behind us? Even you have to admit that Suza hasn't done anything to you in weeks, and she wasn't exactly unprovoked." This was accompanied by a disapproving glance at Erica.

"Lysander, we're just going to have to agree to disagree on this one." Lan frowned, "I don't think I'll ever forgive Suza for what she did to me."

"Hear, hear," Erica put in drowsily.

Lysander sighed, but let it go, "So Exeggcute, what's that star over there?"

There was a five second pause before the lead egg drawled, "You'd better be joking. That's the moon."

Lan snickered, then Lysander started chuckling, and soon the whole group was laughing as one of the eggs muttered, "No bloody appreciation for the stars…"

*

There was dew on the grass the next morning, and the main reason Lan knew this was because she woke up with her face in it. They'd fallen asleep on the hill in their clothes, which were all damp. In the distance Lan could hear the campsite coming alive for the day, and she sat up with a groan. What was it about the ground that you could go to sleep on it thinking it was smooth, only to wake up and discover several rocks digging into your spine?

She sat there for a while, watching the activity going on below her and listening to the various breathing of her friends and the Pokémon. Eventually she heard someone calling her name and focussed on Nikki, who was jogging up the hill and waving.

Nikki reached her and looked around at the others on the hill, "Lan, did you sleep up here? That's so neat!"

"Well, it might be neat, but I'm sore all over," Lan confessed, letting Nikki help her to her feet.

"I was going to ask if you're ready to take some more pictures, but I guess you have to change and have breakfast first!" Nikki released her Mankey and rubbed its head, "Why don't you wake Vulpix?"

Mankey grunted and hopped over to the sleeping fox, poking it with its thumb. Vulpix twitched, but when it was poked again it came awake with a growl and snapped its teeth at Mankey. Charmeleon woke up as its head slipped from Vulpix's back, and after giving Mankey a bleary look it crawled over to Erica and used her stomach as a pillow instead.

Lan changed quickly inside her tent, and after chewing through a hastily made breakfast sandwich she was on her way, Vulpix and Zubat trailing along behind her. They still had two land formations and three plants to photograph, and Nikki wanted to get them all done before they left. They had an hour and a half, but neither girl wanted to rush. Around them, other pairs were scrambling around trying to find everything that they needed, some letting out indignant cries that the landmarks weren't as obvious as they thought they'd be.

Nikki put her arm around Lan's shoulder and giggled, "We're going to win this for sure!"

*

"It's a tie!" Coach Belle announced, still enthusiastically.

They'd had to walk all the way back to school to get the results, but all the tired feet from the past hour evaporated at the news that they had twice the chance of winning. Students from the morning classes were already running across the field towards the proposal acceptance lists, and even from where she was standing Lan could easily pick out Suza's all-pink outfit. Suza looked no where near as good as Nikki had the day before.

"The first pair is…" Belle favoured the dramatic pause, the hand holding the answer sheet raised in the air as he surveyed the students with a dramatic eye, "Ellison Gray and Erica Hunter!"

Lan applauded as loudly as she could, deciding to ignore the sour look Nikki and Ellison exchanged as the boy made his way up to the front to get his "get out of class free" card.

Mr. Hartog cleared his throat, "The second pair is Lan Reeves and Nicole Longmire."

The crowd almost didn't hear him, so soft was his voice and so non-existent was the fanfare leading up to the announcement. Then again, they should all have known by now that Mr. Hartog wasn't a ham like his muscle-bound counterpart.

Nikki took Lan's hand and they moved to the front quickly, the other students parting easily to let them through. More than ever, Lan wished she'd made some progress with her Zubat. The class-skip card was hardly worth using if she already knew she wasn't going to get her third PokeProject.

"Here we are." Mr. Hartog handed out the cards, and in his usual soft voice told them, "These cards are good for any last class of any school day up until the Christmas break. There's no need to use them today if you don't feel like claiming your Pokémon early."

Lan ducked her head and smiled, "I think you read my mind, sir."

"Nonsense. I happened to have coffee with the examiner whose face your Zubat… what was the word she used… molested?" Mr. Hartog chuckled, "If I were you, I would save that card until the last day of class. Moving home for the Christmas holidays can be quite stressful if you're doing it along with the other ninety nine students here."

"That sounds like a great idea," Lan turned to Nikki and smiled. "I have to get ready for afternoon class, but I'll talk to you later, alright?"

Nikki grinned, "Meet me in the far field after class, I want to show you my new Pokémon!"

As they parted ways Lan felt a pleasant smile spread across her face; two female friends and counting.

*************************************************************************************************************************************************


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

The class-skip card sat at the bottom of Lan's bag as she listened to Mr. Hartog's lesson reviewing everything they'd seen in the mountains, and showing photos of each of the landmarks assigned. Many of the pictures had been taken by Lan and Nikki, and Lan felt a self-conscious flush cross her cheeks every time a photo of her appeared on the slideshow. She didn't think of herself as particularly photogenic, and wished that other students had taken more pictures. When she wasn't busy being embarrassed at her still-frame self, she was drinking in the sight of Ellison, who appeared on the slideshow as many times as she did. None of the pictures showed more than the bottom half of his face, but she enjoyed them anyway.

When the final bell of the day rang, she grouped at the door with the others to go and look at the proposal acceptance lists. Conrad, while annoyed that he didn't place first in the photo contest, was standing there with a puffed out chest, absolutely confident in himself. Erica was shaking her head behind his back, and Lysander was practically bouncing on the spot. Surely his third Pokémon would have the correct body type to play Frisbee with him. Fate wouldn't be so cruel as to deny him three times in a row, would it?

"I don't even know why you're bothering to come," Conrad drawled as they walked along, "you said yourself that there's no chance you're getting another Pokémon. Not after your Zubat assaulted the examiner."

"I'm coming for friend support, and so I can see what Pokémon the rest of you get." Lan smirked, "Who knows? I might even feel up to another Pokémon battle."

Conrad smirked, "Who's to say I'll want to battle you? With two Pokémon on my belt, I'll be looking to do multiple matches against someone next."

This was too much for Erica, who broke her silence and snapped, "Good idea, Conrad, you who hasn't won a single match yet. Multiple matches are _exactly_ what you need right now."

"I tied two!" He blustered, his indignation causing him to forget Erica's silence pact as well, "Besides, they weren't exactly fair matchups to begin with. You can't expect a normal Pokémon to have any type of edge over fire or electric types."

She went back to ignoring him, and they waited patiently at the back of the crowd of students. Lan scanned the crowd for Nikki, but she must have used her card already and received her Pokémon early. Erica, like Lan, had decided to save the card for an emergency, and Lan had no idea what Ellison had done with his card. She knew she shouldn't care, but she did. A lot.

On a long shot Lan checked the chart for her name, but as she thought she hadn't been approved for her third Pokémon. Beside her name were the words "action plan suitable, progress minimal", nothing that she hadn't expected. Erica and Lysander waved farewell and disappeared through the doors to get their next Pokémon, but Conrad remained outside. Not wanting to approach him immediately, Lan searched for his name on the list. Sure enough, not only was the comment beside his name "progress minimal, action plan absurd", but next to that was a pinned on note stating that if he did not submit an acceptable action plan by the following week, he would be removed from the academy. Now Lan definitely didn't want to go over and talk to him. Unfortunately, he sought her out.

"What in the name of every rare Pokémon do I have to do to get a second Project around here?! You must have done something right with the Vulpix, and it was aggressive as well! Fess up! You're doing something to bribe them, aren't you? Your father's giving them a feature in one of his research articles!" He grabbed her shoulders and shook, heedless of the shocked faces of the crowd around them.

Lan's arms started flapping, and before she realized what she was doing she'd wound up and slapped Conrad full across the face. He froze, staring at her with a mouth dropping open in startled shock, before releasing her and stepping back.

"Well, now that that's settled." Lan tugged her shirt free of wrinkles, "It's ridiculous for you to blame your inane project plans on someone else. You have no one to blame but yourself for your impending expulsion."

"Don't say that word!" Conrad hissed, grabbing Lan's wrist and taking her away from the crowd. She realized that a lot of people had been doing that do her lately. Once they were around the corner he let her go and took a deep breath that would be more fitting on a man about to leap from a cliff. Finally he ground out, "Will you help me?"

"That sounded like it took a lot of effort for you to say." Lan shook her head, "Unfortunately, I've found that I'm developing a headache from being tossed back and forth recently. I think I'll have to take it easy and not do much constructive thinking until Sunday at the earliest. Bye."

She got most of the way back to the group before he caught up, but he didn't speak until he saw Erica and Lysander walking towards them. The words sounded no easier to say than asking for help, "I'm sorry about shaking you. I'm just frustrated, because I'm probably the only person in the school who's still on their first Pokémon."

"I'm still not helping you." The other two reached the group, and Lan suggested, "Let's go to the far field to see your Pokémon. I'm supposed to meet Nikki there, and I thought we could go together."

"Sure, one place is as good as any to release a new Pokémon." Lysander's smile faltered as he took in Conrad, but he held out a hand for Lan and away they walked.

Conrad was set to scowl, but held it back and coughed out his most hated words once again, "If I don't have a good action plan for next week, they're going to kick me out. Will you help me?"

Erica released Charmeleon and glared at Conrad, "Why don't you just accept that you're no good at helping troubled Pokémon? You could probably have six normal ones caught within a week or two if you left."

"I still believe that the strongest ones are here. I don't want to have to be content with Rattata and Pidgey when I could be getting really rare Pokémon. Will you help me?"

"You could get a Rattata or Pidgey as your next Pokémon here, you know. It's not about the type, it's about helping them."

"Erica, will you _please_ help me?" Conrad would have kicked her in the shins if she wasn't a girl and he didn't need her help.

"Let's catch up with the others. We'll talk on the way." They followed after Lan and Lysander, and Erica continued, "I already told you not to focus on the battle potential of your Pokémon, and we can all see how well that worked. Stop." She pointed at his belt, "Let it out."

"It'll attack you."

She rolled her eyes, "You leave it in there any longer, and you might as well just hand it back to Jefferson right now."

The Lickitung lunged for Erica as soon as it was released, and was promptly knocked head over tail backwards by a tackle from Charmeleon. It went for Conrad instead, and when he realized Charmeleon wasn't going to protect him as well he went to summon his Pokémon back into its ball. Erica slapped his hand down, knocking the Pokèball loose, and he was forced to leap to the side to avoid the assault.

"What is wrong with you?!"

"You're never going to get Lickitung to respect you, let alone love you, if all you do is tell it to fight all the time and put it back in its ball the instant it does something without your permission. It's a living creature, not a machine." Erica didn't even keep an eye on Lickitung as she said this; Charmeleon was doing that for her.

"So you want me to let it hit me. What a great plan."

She didn't say anything at first, just walked right up to him and brought her face within an inch of his. Then she screamed, "Frustration!" and walked away to join the others, Charmeleon trailing obediently after.

Conrad rubbed his temples, his head ringing, and was promptly struck full across the back by his Pokémon's tongue. The impact lifted him off his feet and tossed him face first to the ground. He rolled onto his stinging back and just managed to grab one of Lickitung's paws that was coming in for a double slap. While his Pokémon was pulling its paw free he lifted a leg and kicked it in the belly, sending it a step or two backwards. He scrambled for the Pokèball and summoned the charging Lickitung back into it, furious. Not at anyone else, for once, but at himself. It was clear that he needed a completely different method of thinking than the one he possessed if he wanted to tame Lickitung, and he needed to find it before next Wednesday.

*

Lan waved when she saw Nikki and smiled broadly, "Well? Are you excited with your new Pokémon?"

Nikki shrugged, "Sort of. I just have to battle it and get it to evolve and its problem will go away, but it's going to be difficult to do."

"Why?"

"Well, take a look." Nikki released her newest Pokémon, a Kakuna with half a dozen finger-sized imprints along its shell, "It doesn't know how to Harden, and not only that but its shell is like putty!" She knelt down and patted Kakuna's head as softly as she could, "Do you have any suggestions?"

Lan sighed, "I don't think either one of my Pokémon would be any help. Vulpix is a fire type, and Zubat would probably fly straight for the other students outside. What about yours, Lysander?"

Lysander froze halfway through winding up to release his third Pokémon, "Oh, well I suppose I could ask Exeggcute. I'm just going to see what my new Pokémon is first though, alright?"

"Of course," Nikki smiled politely at him, and Lan found it refreshing that not every fashion-obsessed girl in the school wanted Lysander to fall in love with her.

Lysander tossed the Pokèball again, his Frisbee sitting on top of his backpack and ready for use, and Lan felt her chest tighten with excitement. She wanted Lysander's Pokémon to be able to play Frisbee almost as badly as he did; she didn't think she could stand the swallowed disappointment from him a third time.

The red energy solidified and revealed a Sandslash, and Lysander's face lit up. He knelt down by the confused Pokémon and smiled, rubbing its head and introducing himself. The Sandslash made a happy noise and rubbed up against him, and Lan smiled. She didn't know what was wrong with it, but she hoped it was nothing that would prevent Lysander from having his long-awaited Frisbee game.

"Cute." Erica had caught up with them, a smirk on her face as she took in Lysander and Sandslash, "He must be thrilled."

"It looks that way. Where's Conrad?"

Erica glanced over her shoulder and made a disgusted noise, "Coming. He should just be a normal trainer. This isn't for him."

Nikki tilted her head, curiosity everywhere on her face, "Why? What's wrong with him?"

"He's still on his first Pokémon," Lan hesitated, but decided to tell the rest, "and if he doesn't submit an acceptable proposal by next week, they're going to kick him out."

Nikki shrugged, "Ellison's the same way. Nothing he's trying is getting his Pikachu to be any less afraid, and the school doesn't want to keep students that can't connect with their Pokémon. Rehabilitation isn't for everyone."

She might as well have poked Lan in the throat. Lan knew that Ellison disliked her, but she wasn't about to let him get kicked out of school just because his Pikachu couldn't get over its fear.

"Anyway, time to meet my last Pokémon of the term." Erica tossed the Pokèball onto the ground.

"Of the term? What do you mean?"

"Students are only allowed three PokeProjects per term. It's so everyone will be on equal footing after the winter break, and have something else to do during next term. It would be no fun if you got all six first term and then had nothing to do second, right? Hey, it's an Ivysaur."

Lan blinked; sure enough, an Ivysaur was standing on the grass in front of Erica, looking around in interest. Its eyes focussed on Lan and it gave an appreciative, "Saur!" before walking the distance between them and wrapping an appreciative vine around her leg. She'd changed into her skirt after returning from the hike.

"Eep!" Lan tried to pull away, but she was caught fast, "Erica! A little help?"

Erica scratched her neck pensively, "It likes women in skirts?"

Nikki released her Mankey and instructed, "Help Lan get free, Mankey!"

It hopped over and started pulling on the vine as well, but at Nikki's words Ivysaur had looked in her direction, and with an equally appreciative noise shot out a vine and wrapped it around her leg as well, dragging her the fifteen feet across the ground until she was next to Lan. Nikki was wearing shorts.

"Alright, that's enough you lady-leg letcher. Charmeleon, an ember on each vine should be enough." Erica folded her arms.

Charmeleon snorted a small fireball onto each vine, and Ivysaur immediately withdrew its vines with an angry snarl. Apparently it didn't like anyone getting in its way. Charmeleon widened its stance, ready for a fight if need be, but Erica waved it down and approached Ivysaur.

She sat down in front of it and sighed, "What are we going to do with you?"

"Oh, that is _not_ fair!" Conrad had arrived, and his statement applied to both Lysander and Erica.

"Nothing ever is with you, Conrad," Erica quipped. "Lickitung's put away, I see."

"Yes, well, I had to lie on the ground five minutes after I recalled it because of latent paralysis from when it _hit me_." He pointed at her Ivysaur, "But why do you get two starter Pokémon? It's not…"

"Fair, yes, we heard that already." Erica stood up and recalled Ivysaur, "I'm sure you'd love this one. It has a bare leg fetish. For women only."

Conrad wrinkled his nose, "Ugh, men who chase after women are almost as bad as women who throw themselves at men."

Lan went red, but neither one noticed. They were setting up for a verbal sparring match once again. As soon as she thought this, Lan knew how to save both Conrad and Ellison from being expelled.

*

"A what?"

"A self-defence workshop, Coach Belle." Lan tried to look as convincing as she could, "For both students and their Pokémon. I'm sure it would be popular."

Coach Belle rubbed his chin with his index finger and thumb, clearly interested and thinking of the possibilities, "I'd have to get it approved by the principal, of course. Do you really think students would want to attend?"

"All of my friends want to." It was a lie, and she was wishing she hadn't said it; Belle knew who her friends were, and made that clear by what he said next.

"Hmm, yes, the Dole boy looks like one hit would knock him flat, doesn't he? Very well, I'll talk to Principal Jefferson about it."

"Thank you so much!" Lan was about to go when Belle stopped her.

"I'm glad you're taking an interest in protecting yourself, Lan. Especially after that janitor's closet incident. Don't worry, I'm sure I'll receive approval within the week."

Lan gulped. She hadn't considered that _she'd_ be expected to take the class as well!

*

Coach Belle worked with remarkable speed. The very next day a poster was up advertising the first self-defence workshop, to take place after school on Monday. Of course, a great deal of the student body was too hung over to notice it, as there was still a rumrunner somewhere on the premises, but Lan was pleased that her plan was going along so smoothly. Now all she had to do was make sure Ellison saw it and decided to go. Lysander was already working on Conrad.

It was virtually impossible to find Ellison when she was looking for him, so she left their meeting up to fate and started getting to work on her Zubat. She now knew what she had to do to help it, but her wallet couldn't afford the perfumes it was attracted to. She didn't want to go to Nikki outright and ask if she could use some of her perfume, as their friendship was only three days old and thus a little early to be asking for favours, but she didn't know what else to do. Suza was definitely out of the question.

She met Nikki as the other girl was getting ready for the weekly Saturday night party. Nikki was styling her hair, but she caught sight of Lan in her mirror and waved, holding up a finger for Lan to wait. Once she was done she came over and flashed Lan a smile, "Hi Lan, what brings you here on a Saturday night?"

Lan felt her hands fiddling with the hem of her shirt and made them stop, "I was just wondering what you were doing?"

"Oh. Well we're getting ready to go out to the far battle arena, it's where a lot of White Podders and their friends hang out on Saturdays. Do you want to come?"

"I'm sorry, but I really have to work on my Zubat. I've had it for two weeks and I haven't made any progress. I just came by because I thought we could work on them together or something." Lan's face was going red as she realized how nerdy she must sound, "Saturday night isn't usually anything special to me."

Nikki's head tilted the way it did when she was thinking something strange through, and then her smile gained its confidence back, "That's fine. Your Zubat is addicted to perfume, right?"

"Yes."

"Wait right there." Nikki disappeared into her room and came back a few minutes later with at least a dozen fashion magazines. She handed the stack to Lan with triumph, "These things usually have all sorts of perfume samples in them. You can use those if you'd like."

"Oh wow! Thank you Nikki!" Lan was ecstatic, "I was afraid I'd have to buy a bottle of expensive perfume or something!"

"Don't worry about it. I already own most of the stuff they're advertising."

"Great! I'll get to work right away!"

Lan started to walk down the hall, but was stopped by Nikki's, "Lan!"

She turned, "Yes?"

"If you ever _do_ want to come to the party, just ask. It'd be fun having you there."

Lan nodded and continued walking, clutching the magazines to her chest as a smile grew on her face. She was so busy thinking about her new friend and the fact that she'd been invited to a party that she turned the corner too sharply and bumped square into Ellison. Rather than have a flush on her face at seeing him again, her first thought was to the perfume samples in the magazines and hoping that they hadn't been ruptured.

She muttered a brief, "Sorry," and set the magazines on the windowsill, flipping through each one to make sure the samples were safe.

"Watch where you're going. I could have been carrying a drink or something." When she didn't reply Ellison snapped, "Did you hear me?"

"Yes, yes." Lan picked the magazines back up, "I said I was sorry. I've just made a breakthrough on my Pokémon training and I want to…"

"Did I ask for your life's story?"

A second male voice cut in, "No, but seeing as how she's offering a method of training her Pokémon and you're pending expulsion, I'd listen." Conrad shouldered past Ellison and took the magazines from Lan's arms, pausing only to aim a glare at the other boy, "Come on Lan, tell me about your breakthrough."

Lan let him escort her back to her room, amazement running unchecked across her face. She couldn't believe that snarky and bull-headed Conrad was being so nice to her, which led her to conclude that he wanted something. It was a mean conclusion to draw, especially since he'd just told off a bully and was carrying her books, but she made it anyway.

Once they were both sitting in her room, she hesitantly began to tell him about her plans for Zubat. He listened to the entire thing and even offered a suggestion or two, and by the end she couldn't hide the stunned expression in her eyes.

Conrad sighed, "Fine, fine, I didn't just come here to listen to you schedule. Lysander told me you were the one who got Coach Belle to set up the self-defence class so that Lickitung and I can get along and I can stay in F.O.C.U.S."

That wasn't exactly what she'd told Lysander to say, but she wasn't about to contradict it, "I just thought it would be helpful."

"I'm sure it will be. Thank you." He didn't even appear to be choking on the words, "Now I'm really sorry I shook you this afternoon. Look," he didn't give her a chance to say that it didn't matter, "I have to go, but good luck with Zubat."

"Thank you," Lan saw him to the door, and after he'd gone she clapped her hands and went back to the magazines. Progress with friends was as heady a feeling as progress with Pokémon.

*

The next day at noon Lan stood waiting for Nikki on the main green. She'd woken up that morning to a letter slid under her door asking her to meet there and bring both Zubat and the perfume samples. Lan had spent the morning asking the cafeteria workers what the worst taste they knew of was, and now held a bottle of sugarless cough syrup.

The first indication Lan had that Nikki was coming was her Mankey, who scampered across the lawn and bowled into Vulpix. The fox growled and immediately started chewing on Mankey's tail, but it didn't seem to mind. Nikki followed at a slower pace, her Kakuna balancing on top of the picnic basket she was carrying. She waved when she saw Lan and grinned at their tussling Pokémon.

"I'm glad you could make it. I have the perfect idea for both of us!" Nikki pointed at one of the farther fields, "Let's head out there, I heard a lot of students in the halls challenging one another to fights."

Lan nodded, "Good idea. I suppose that because they've had their Pokémon for a while, they've fixed them enough to be able to battle."

Nikki nodded, "There's that, and also the fact that there's a school-run tournament coming up in a few weeks."

"Really?" Lan blinked, "I haven't heard anything about it."

"They were just putting the announcement up as I was coming outside, but it'll be the talk of the school for the next few days I think. There will be prizes as well."

When they'd gone far enough Nikki spread the picnic blanket and revealed her plan. Instead of using themselves as the ones to deter Zubat, she suggested putting the perfume and cough syrup on Kakuna. The small licks of Zubat's tongue would be enough to help Kakuna gain experience, but not enough to damage its already pockmarked shell.

They spent a good ten minutes preparing Kakuna, first dabbing the syrup gently onto its shell with napkins and then spraying perfume over it. Once or twice Lan pressed a little too hard with her napkin and left a dent in the bug's shell, and she felt bad for it. Kakuna would never have survived in the wild; being bumped by another Kakuna would damage it.

Once Kakuna was ready Lan released Zubat and let its nostrils go to work. At first the bat fluttered around aimlessly, but then its nose picked up the perfume and it went into a dive at Kakuna. Inches from colliding with the bug, Zubat pulled up and started licking away at the shell. It didn't lick for long before giving a disgusted squeak and retreating to a nearby tree branch to spit the taste from its tongue.

The girls set up lunch and spent the better part of the afternoon talking and comparing homework, occasionally changing up the perfume scent on Kakuna. Zubat couldn't stop flying in to lick, but as the day wore on it would only give the bug a lick or two at most before leaving. It wasn't cured, but it was well on its way.

Across the field, Erica's training with Ivysaur wasn't progressing nearly as smoothly. The grass Pokémon would be committed to its training until a pair of clean-shaven legs walked by, at which point it would give a lecherous grunt and latch on with its vines. Erica had already apologized to six girls, and was getting frustrated that she couldn't think of a way to solve her problem. Unlike Conrad, she wasn't going to keep her Pokémon in its ball until the perfect solution presented itself, but she wished that it would come along soon.

It was only when she saw Ivysaur approach a group of bare-legged girls and aim for the one showing the most skin that she knew what she could do to at least spare the rest of the school's female populace from being dragged across the ground by a perverted Pokémon.

*

"You want to borrow what?"

"Your shortest pair of shorts, Suza." Erica couldn't believe she was asking this, "It's for helping my Pokémon. Please?"

Suza pouted, "You've hardly been spending time with me, Erica, and now you're asking to borrow my things? I didn't think you would be the kind of person to take advantage of a relationship like this."

"Oh please, Suza, we sleep in the same room for eight hours every day and usually talk for two or three hours before that. _And_ we exercise together whenever you make the effort to come to the arena in the morning."

Suza turned up her carefully powdered nose, "If you're going to take that tone then I'm afraid I can't do anything to help you."

"Suza…"

"No, I'm so sorry Erica, but if I let you push me around now, why, who _knows_ what our friendship will become in the future?" Suza blinked her eyelashes prettily, "I hope that this doesn't affect how you feel about me. I'm just trying to do what's best for us."

"Why are you talking so nauseatingly…" Erica turned towards the door as she said it and didn't bother to finish her sentence. A boy she didn't recognize was standing there, a suave smirk on his face. His gaze went right past Erica as if she weren't there and locked on Suza, and the two started talking.

Erica glared at her roommate, but the look went unnoticed and eventually she left. Her path took her straight to Principal Jefferson's office, where she left a message with his Alakazam requesting a room change. Enough was enough.

************************************************************************************************************************************************


	10. Chapter 10

Pokémon Chapter Ten

The Monday evening self-defence class had a larger turnout than Lan was expecting, but Coach Belle was pleased. Most of the students from the Green and Red Pods were there, as well as a few from the other pods. Lan kept looking around for Ellison, her anxiety that he would miss the class and be kicked out rising, until eventually he came through the door.

"So, you all want to learn how to defend yourselves and bond with your Pokémon through physical training." Coach Belle held up six Pokèballs and tossed them onto the gym floor behind him, releasing four Machamp and two Alakazam. "Training is a lot of work, let me tell you. This class will make your regular gym class feel like a stroll through the park. I don't expect half of you to come back, but those of you who do will be rewarded in the long run. Now, because we don't want anyone getting burned, electrocuted, or what have you, your Pokémon are going to spar with each other and you're going to spar with each other. Release your Pokémon."

Lan chose Vulpix, who had growled at her all last night for spending the day with Zubat while it got crush-snuggled by Mankey. Erica chose Charmeleon, which surprised no one and relieved a few girls who'd worn shorts to the class. Lysander held two Pokèballs up, trying to decide which to pick, but eventually chose Exeggcute. This surprised Lan, who'd thought for sure he would pick his new Sandslash. Jericho called out Paras, which no longer leapt for the nearest leg, and Conrad obviously chose Lickitung.

As soon as Lickitung was clear of its Pokèball it leapt at the nearest student, only to be immediately restrained by one of Belle's Alakazam. A few of the other Pokémon were having issues as well, including Ellison's Pikachu. Still wearing the harness, it was scrambling at the matted floor and desperately trying to reach the relative safety of the bleachers.

Coach Belle surveyed the students and Pokémon and chuckled, "It's a good thing self-defence and discipline go hand in hand. Some of your PokeProjects look like they could use some of both. Now, find yourself a partner and let's get started on some basic holds."

Lan chewed on her lip, wondering if she should try to pick someone whose Pokémon would be able to spar with hers or just pick Erica and let their Pokémon figure out how to practise self-defence on their own. That was when she saw one of Belle's Machamp waving both of its left arms at the assembled Pokémon, gathering them onto the other side of the gym. It appeared they would be learning their own methods of self-defence.

The class went for an hour and a half, and both Erica and Lan came out of it with some bruises unintentionally bestowed by the other. They waited for their Pokémon to finish, watching with interest which Pokémon Charmeleon and Vulpix were paired with. Charmeleon was blocking the swipes of a Poliwhirl, and from where she stood Erica could see that her Pokémon was annoyed at something. Vulpix and a Rattata were leaping at each other and turning in the air at the last second, lashing out with their back paws as they went. It seemed that a Pokémon's version of defence was a stronger offence.

Conrad approached with a larger swagger than usual, and they could only hope it meant he'd been able to touch his Lickitung without hostility being exchanged.

"So, do you think you'll be ready to submit your proposal on Wednesday?"

Conrad smirked, "Absolutely. Lickitung is learning what stances are hostile and which ones are neutral, so now the fact that I'm not an enemy will finally get through its thick skull."

Lan pinched the bridge of her nose, "Let's just hope it doesn't know which words are insulting and which are neutral."

Tuesday afternoon found Lan and Nikki training with their Pokémon out in the far field again, while the boys worked with their own Pokémon. Zubat and Kakuna were still interacting with one another, the one licking and being repulsed while the other slowly but surely levelled up. Nikki's parents had placed a couple of health potions in her virtual account, and every now and then she would spray Kakuna with one, making sure not to spray directly onto its shell in case it hurt it.

Conrad had only made a single derogatory statement at the fragile bug Pokémon before settling down to work on his proposal for the staff, and he was continually scratching words out and replacing them with the help of a thesaurus. His Lickitung was still inside its Pokèball. Lysander was further away from the group, trying to get Sandslash to use dig. It wasn't working.

"I don't understand it," Lysander dropped down beside Lan while Sandslash took a break, "it can play and it's really friendly, but as soon as I try to get it to do anything remotely close to battling it draws a blank. Whoever heard of a Sandslash who couldn't dig?"

"One of the girls in White Pod has a Pokémon like that." Nikki was cutting Pokechow into tiny little pieces so it wouldn't hurt Kakuna when it chewed, "It has something to do with how they grew up when they were young Pokémon. They can't learn any moves naturally."

Lysander scratched his head, "So what do I do?"

"Use TMs, and HMs if you can get them. That's how she fixed hers."

"That's a great idea!" Lysander was about to jump to his feet when he realized something, "TMs cost a lot of money, don't they?"

"Sometimes you can find them in the wild, or you can go in competitions for them."

"That Pokémon tournament that's coming up at school!" Now Lysander jumped up, "I'll enter the single Pokémon class, and get myself a TM!"

"You could enter the double," Lan pointed out. "Just start training Exeggcute and Staryu for it."

Lysander rubbed the back of his neck, "I could. I just don't want Exeggcute thinking that I'm a dictator. They're already mad at me for putting them into the self-defence class last night. Apparently they all wanted to train with separate opponents and the Alakazam wouldn't let them. It said they had to fight as a group, since that's what they are."

Lan flinched, "They really wouldn't appreciate that."

"No. So I was going to just use Staryu. It's fine as long as the sticker stays on its prong, and I think I've found out how to solve its spinning problem altogether."

Conrad glared up at him and stood up with crossed arms, annoyed that everyone was solving their problems except him, "How?"

"I'll just get it to evolve, like what Nikki's doing with Kakuna."

"It's not that easy." Conrad's mood was suddenly smug, "Staryu only evolve when you use a Water Stone on them, and those things are expensive. Good luck getting one."

Lysander was suddenly crestfallen, "I suppose I'll just have to wait for that one then. But we're still entering the single Pokémon round, and we'll win!"

"Don't be so sure. Lickitung and I are going in that round as well, and there's no way we're going to lose!"

"That's assuming you're still here." Erica strolled past the two posturing boys to Lan and Nikki, her Ivysaur walking calmly at her side.

Conrad gave an outraged squawk and jabbed an accusing finger at her legs, "What do you think you're wearing?!"

Erica sighed and turned back to him. In place of her baggy Capri pants and different coloured striped socks were a pair of tight short shorts, and the top she was wearing showed of a good three inches of her stomach, "I borrowed the clothes from my new roommate. As long as I have the most amount of skin showing, Ivysaur won't molest the other girls on campus. Problem?"

"Yes there's a problem! It's indecent!"

"Is that your only complaint? If so, I don't care. It's not like I'm wearing them in class. So Lan," she spun on her heel and resumed her path, "how's Zubat doing?"

Lan tried her best not to giggle, as Conrad was glaring at them both, "It's licking less and less, but we don't know if that will make it stop altogether or if it will just stop licking Kakuna."

"You can use Ivysaur for another target, if you'd like. I don't mind."

Ivysaur looked as though it minded, but a look from Erica sent it ambling forward. Lan was amazed that even though she and Nikki's legs were exposed below the knee, Ivysaur did nothing.

"So who _is_ your new roommate, Erica? You haven't really told us anything about her."

"A girl from White Pod. Her name's Ginny."

Nikki clapped her hands, excitement on her face, "Really?! Ginny is one of my closest friends in class! She didn't tell me she was getting a new roommate!"

Erica raised an eyebrow, "What happened to the old one?"

"Oh, she was a girl from Blue Pod." Nikki shooed the conversation topic away, as it needed no further explanation, "Do you think Kakuna will evolve soon? It gets so depressed that it can't play with the other Pokémon…"

Erica didn't bother pointing out that normal Kakuna didn't exactly play with other Pokémon either, as they had no legs and could barely hop around. Instead she squatted down in front of Kakuna, examining it as she absent-mindedly swatted Ivysaur's approaching vines away from her rear, "I really don't know. I heard that with normal Kakuna you can tell when they're close by the dulling colour of their shell, but this one could just be really shiny because Zubat's been licking it so much."

Lan paused from applying the perfume-sauce combination to Ivysaur, "Bug Pokémon evolve quickly though, so a few more days of this should have it turning into a Beedrill in no time!"

While the girls discussed Kakuna's status, Conrad showed his newest training program to Lysander. Lysander read it over, easily picking out the places where Conrad had run to the thesaurus to make the words more pleasant. When he was done he shrugged and handed it back, "It's okay."

"I can't have it _just_ okay, Lysander, expulsion is on the line here! What can I do to make it better?"

"Have you ever thought that maybe this kind of training isn't for you after all? You'd probably make a great trainer with normal Pokémon…"

"Why is everyone telling me that?!" Conrad crunched the proposal into a ball and hurled it away, "Why is it that everyone else in this school is doing so well, and is 'meant' to be here, and I find people continually suggesting to me that I should pack up and leave?! If I could just get past this one _stupid_ Pokémon and get a new one then I'd be able to show the teachers what I can do, but I can't! It's so _frustrating_!" At this Conrad wound up and kicked his backpack, sending it past the girls and up against a tree trunk.

Lysander tried to talk to him, but Conrad shoved past and stormed back towards the residence, "Wait! Conrad, where are you going?!"

"I'm packing!" Conrad hollered back, "Why waste any more time on a proposal they'll only laugh at?!"

Lysander turned back to Lan, "What should we do?"

Lan bit her lip, "I don't know."

Conrad was shoving shirts back into his suitcase when there came a knock at the door. He turned with a glare that shifted into a horrible scowl. Erica was standing there with his backpack hanging from one hand, and the look on her face suggested that she was torn between amusement and a need to be helpful. Someone had put her up to this.

"What do you want?"

"Just here to give you your backpack."

He snatched it from her, "Well, you've given it to me. Now leave."

As he turned back to his packing she lifted his Pokèball from his belt and started tossing it back and forth in her hands, "The others said I should be the one to talk to you, since you already dislike me and all. So here we go," she sighed at the degradation she was about to perform to herself, tossed the Pokèball back to him, widened her stance, then pointed at him and winked, "Don't give up! You can do it if you believe in yourself!"

Conrad's face was blank as he stared at her, "What the hell was that?"

"That was Lysander's. Hang on, let me do Lan's." She drew her legs together, clasped her hands in front of her chest, and widened her eyes, "You can't leave, Conrad. What about your dreams? You're going to be the strongest trainer at FOCUS, remember?"

He rolled his eyes, "That sounds like Lan. What's yours?"

She shrugged, "If you want to go, go. If you want to stay, I'd like to battle you again."

Conrad hesitated, staring down at his Pokèball, "There's no point. It won't listen to me. I've been so busy trying to battle everyone that I've never really tried to fix its problems. It wanted to battle as well," he started to defend his actions, but then stopped, "but that shouldn't matter. That's what makes me the trainer, I'm the one who decides what to do. All I did was make the problem worse."

"So if the problem is that the two of you are having trouble working together, how are you going to fix it?"

Conrad tossed a hand in the air in exasperation, "Do teambuilding exercises?"

Erica nodded, but then looked over her shoulder into the hallway, "How's that, sir?"

Principal Jefferson appeared in the doorway, an exultant grin on his face, "Wonderful! The boy can learn after all! Unpack, lad, unpack!"

Conrad stared at Erica, "You set this all up?!"

"What can I say? Your written proposals suck."

Conrad wasn't the only person who'd been in danger of expulsion and come through it still enrolled. Ellison had just presented his training proposal and the results were favourable. If it wasn't for the self-defence class, he'd probably be spending his last night at the school, but Coach Belle had put in a fond word and Ellison was free to stay. Now all he had to do was make good on his training schedule, and that required a training partner.

He was almost to Suza's room when he was intercepted by Lan. He hadn't talked to her since the night she'd bumped into him, and his reprimand had been cut short by Conrad.

"Hello. I was wondering what you thought of the self-defence class the other night? It was quite useful, don't you think? I mean, some of those flips were hard to do, but with practise…"

"Get out of my way." He brushed past her and kept walking. Expulsion might have been out of the picture, but he wanted his Pikachu to make enough progress so that he could get a second PokeProject the following week.

Suza was busy talking to her new roommate about the conduct of their room, but when she saw him she immediately giggled and tilted her head to the side, telling the girl that she was sure they would have a wonderful time together, and she couldn't wait to get to know her better. Ellison smiled; Suza always brightened up when she saw him, and he could only take this as a sign that she was beginning to return his largely unspoken affections. Why else would she be twirling one of her curls around her finger at this moment?

"Why, Ellison! What are you doing inside on such a beautiful day?"

"I'm staying at the school. My proposal passed."

"Oh, that's too, _too_ wonderful! We simply must do something to celebrate!" Suza clapped her hands and giggled at him, "Ice cream?"

"I need to train more. Would you like to train with me?"

"Not really." She picked up a lip gloss from her dresser and applied it slowly, "I want ice cream. Let's go get some, Anna."

Suza held out her hand to her roommate, and the two girls flounced out of the room and left Ellison behind. Once they were out of earshot Suza muttered, "Honestly, he's so creepy. Most of the time he just stands there, and when he talks it's in short sentences and monotone."

"Don't you think you're leading him on?"

"Please!" Suza giggled, but this time it had a mean tinge to it, "If he thinks there's anything there he's delusional. He slouches around like a drab and completely doesn't deserve someone like me."

Suza and Anna shared a mean spirited laugh and linked arms, bouncing their way to the cafeteria. On the way they passed several girls from the White Pod and turned their noses up at them, making sure to add an extra sway of the hips as they went. Anna was in Blue Pod with Suza, and she knew exactly what the score was when it came to Blue and White.

"Oh wait, mirror check." Suza pulled Anna into the bathroom nearby and gave herself a quick inspection. Her clothes were in line, save for a wrinkle on the shoulder that she pulled loose. Her eye shadow was beginning to fade, so she brushed another layer on and tested it with her patented smile.

Once she was finished, she looked over at Anna. Her roommate was putting touch-ups to her appearance as well, and Suza was relieved, "You know, my old roommate didn't care what she looked like at all, and then out of the blue she demanded that I give her a pair of my best shorts! Can you believe it?"

"Horrible. Where is she now?"

"She's the one who changed rooms with you."

Anna giggled, "She and Ginny are going to hate each other. Ginny won't walk out of the room until both she and her roommate are runway perfect."

"Ugh, White Pod is _so_ full of posers."

"I know!"

They gave a final primp for good measure and exited the bathroom, linking arms once again and entering the cafeteria. It was mostly empty, and the kitchen staff was switching the food over from lunch to dinner. The ice cream counter was drawing the only person in the room, and when Suza saw who it was she gasped and shook Anna's shoulder.

"How do I look?"

The fact that they'd just come from the bathroom was irrelevant. Anna gave her a full inspection and held her shoulders supportively, "You're the cutest thing I've ever seen."

"Liar." Suza adjusted her purse and took a breath, "Wish me luck!"

She approached the ice cream counter with determination, but as soon as he turned she stopped and gave a cute gasp-giggle, "Oh, hello Lysander!"

"Hi Suza." Lysander handed his money over the counter, "Is that your new roommate?"

Suza subtly edged to her left and cut off Lysander's view of Anna, "Yes. I'm so sad that things didn't work out with Erica. I tried _so_ hard."

"It's probably for the best that you two aren't living together any more." Lysander picked up a tray with five ice creams on it, "Now you can get some space, and then take a second try at the friendship."

Suza resisted the urge to snort at Lysander's naïveté. He was too handsome to let something that small get in the way, "That's such a good idea. So," she inched closer and went up on tiptoes, peering down at the multiple ice creams, "are you going to eat all of those yourself?"

Lysander laughed, "Of course not! That one's mine, that's Lan's," he was looking at the ice cream as he pointed and missed her brief scowl, "these two are for Exeggcute, and this one is Nikki's."

Distasteful thoughts of Lan evaporated from Suza's head as she heard this new female name. As far as she was concerned, if a boy made friends with girls he did it in the first two weeks of class, and any new women after that were girlfriends. The mere idea that Lysander had a girlfriend and she'd kissed him infuriated her.

Outwardly, she stammered, "Wh-who's Nikki?"

"Lan met her when we went on our hike with Mr. Hartog and Coach Belle. She's nice." Lysander turned for the door, "I have to get going, Suza, or else this ice cream will melt. See you."

Suza waited until he was gone to sigh in a romantic fashion and carefully swoon against the ice cream counter.

Anna hurried over, "That looked like it went well! He's cute."

"He's mine, sweetheart. Try anything and I'll shave your hair off." Suza tilted her head and let her curls bob, the glitter glinting in the sunlight, "Now let's get some ice cream."

The next day Nikki asked Lan if she wanted to meet her group of friends. Since Nikki had been spending so much time with Lan this only seemed fair, and after class Lan met her by the cafeteria and proceeded to enter the fashion circle's designated dining area. Lan and her friends usually just took whatever table was available, but the White pod apparently had their own section.

As they wove through the crowd Lan got the feeling she was being stared at, and the stares weren't entirely friendly. Finally they reached Nikki's destination, and she presented Lan with a flourish.

"This is Lan. Lan, this is Roselyn."

She was the same height as Lan, but with long and silky blonde hair and gray eyes. Her complexion was the envied peaches and cream, and her figure was nicely curved. Next to Lan, however, she had a perfect hourglass figure. Add a stylish uniform that bordered on preppy and belonged on a top fashion runway, and Lan felt positively drab.

Roselyn held out a hand and Lan shook it, then she smiled politely, "So you're the one Nikki's been spending all this time with. You're not what I was expecting."

Lan wasn't quite sure how to respond to this statement, so she tried a light-hearted laugh that came out more of a squawk, "We've been training our Pokémon together, it's going quite well."

"Is it?" Even though it was a question, Roselyn's tone suggested she didn't want an answer, and this was confirmed when she turned her attention to Nikki instead, "You missed discussion yesterday. It's miniskirts on Friday."

Lan knew about the fashion war between White and Blue, but she hadn't realized it was this serious. She knew she should stay quiet but the words slipped out in a joking fashion, "If you're going to wear skirts you'd better watch out for my friend's Ivysaur." She coloured at the condescending glances she was being given and explained, "It goes after bare legs."

"Yes, thank you for that, Lan." Roselyn rolled her eyes and moved off through the crowd, leaving Lan to feel absolutely unsatisfactory.

Nikki put an arm around Lan's shoulders and gave her a comforting squeeze, "She must be in a bad mood right now. Don't worry Lan, she's a really nice person once you get to know her." Seeing that this wasn't helping, she took Lan's wrist and led her over to another of her friends, "This is Ginny, Erica's roommate."

Ginny's appearance didn't help Lan feel any prettier. She wore an off-the-shoulder purple top and fitted black slacks, and her dark purple hair was chin-length and chic. She gave Lan a once-over before allowing her mouth to twitch upwards in a brief smile, "That's a good length for your hair. The larger lenses are better for the shape of your eyes as well."

Lan felt her cheeks turn pink, "Thank you. Erica showed us the outfit you let her use today."

"Oh that," Ginny waved it away, "it looked horrible on me anyway. I'm glad she could use it. Now," Ginny reached down and held Lan's skirt, lifting the hem until it was well above her knees, "your legs are a little on the thin side, but still nice." She let go, ignoring Lan's spluttering embarrassment. "Are you going to be joining us in miniskirts on Friday?"

"I don't own one." It was the first thing Lan could think of, but it seemed to be exactly what Ginny wanted to hear.

"I have enough to outfit everyone here. Come on, let's go try some on."

Lan noticed Nikki's eyes narrow, and the girl subtly placed a shoulder between Lan and Ginny. Ginny took the hint and laughed, her voice deep and pleasant. With a flick of her hair Ginny strolled away through the crowd, and after a pause Nikki took Lan's hand and they followed. She didn't know what she was getting into, but Lan could tell that making friends in the White pod would be nothing like making them in Green.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

When Friday morning rolled around, the mood in the air was one of excitement and anticipation. After much deliberation, Principal Jefferson had decided the school would hold a Halloween dance in one week, but he wasn't one to completely turn his back on the purpose of the school, and introduced a twist at the last minute that had half the student populace groaning. The students' costumes would be limited to the Pokémon that they owned. While the idea of a look-alike dance was appealing to many of the students, quite a few of the girls were less than thrilled at the prospect of going dressed as a Slowbro.

So it was that when Lan entered the cafeteria that morning, she was approached by no less that ten girls from various Pods. Their reason for coming to her, she soon learned, was that they all wanted to borrow Vulpix for the evening. After politely refusing, stating that they didn't own Vulpix and it would probably bite them, Lan settled down to breakfast and tried not to pull at the hem of her skirt.

Possessing an unusually keen eye when it came to the changing wardrobe of his friends, Conrad was the first to notice Lan's miniskirt. He went to walk past her to his normal place at the table, stopped, took three steps backwards, and stared at her.

"What?" Lan could feel the blood rushing to her cheeks.

"Just what exactly is going on here? First Erica strolls across the lawn in practically non-existent shorts, and now you're wearing a skirt I'd expect to see on one of them," he jerked his head at the White Pod section.

"That's where I got it from, actually," she mumbled. "It's miniskirt Friday."

"I see. So now you're going to act like all the other girls at school and…"

"Oh, give it a rest, Conrad." Erica sat down across from Lan, "If Lan wants to wear the skirt she can. You're not her boyfriend."

"And if you were, you probably wouldn't be complaining," Nikki put in, sitting down beside Lan and inadvertently taking Conrad's seat. "That skirt really does look nice on you, Lan."

Conrad puffed out his chest indignantly, but upon realizing he was being ignored he moved further down the table and waited impatiently for Lysander to arrive. Lysander took longer than usual, as he had to weave his way through several girls who didn't say anything but looked at him expectantly.

Conrad looked from Lysander, to Lan, to Erica, and then back again, before crunching into his toast with disgust, "This whole school's overrun with hormones."

*

His foul mood continued throughout morning class and lunch, and as they were stacking their trays Lysander decided to talk to him about it. He waved Erica and Lan away, then looped his arm through Conrad's and hauled him out the door. Conrad protested all the way across the lawn until Lysander let him go, at which point he tugged the wrinkles from his jacket and tried his best to recover his dignity.

"What?"

"I don't think you should be criticizing the girls like that. Why don't you like it when they wear girly clothing?"

"It's demeaning." Conrad crossed his arms and stuck his chin in the air.

Lysander frowned, "That's very considerate of you, but I don't think that's why you're taking offence."

"Oh no? And why do you think I'm taking offence?"

Lysander put his arms behind his head and linked his fingers, "Because they're your friends and as long as they dress neutrally you don't have to think about the fact that they're girls."

"What?!"

"You've never had girls as friends before, have you?"

"I'm not talking about this. Especially not with you."

"Conrad," Lysander sounded slightly hurt, "we're roommates. You don't have to bristle every time I figure something out about you. I don't even know where you're from, or anything about what you did before you came here. It's weird."

"Vermillion," Conrad confessed, guilt worming into his voice. "I worked as a guide for the Diglett cave. There was absolutely nothing exciting about my life until I came here."

"Did you ever have a Pokémon before Lickitung?"

"No, but I looked after my older sister's Pokémon and sometimes I battled with them." Conrad realized he was mimicking Lysander's pose and stopped, "It just bothers me that so many students here are starting to pay more attention to their physical appearance and dating than their Pokémon."

"I don't pay more attention to my appearance than my Pokémon," Lysander pointed out.

"No, you're just constantly surrounded by girls who want to date you. That's why I think this whole dance thing is a bad idea."

"Because you don't have any girls wanting to date you?" Lysander was only half-joking.

"Are you kidding? I could get a date if I wanted to, but I don't. I gave up dating to come here." Conrad winced, realizing he'd said too much, but Lysander respectfully pretended not to notice. "Enough of that. I don't suppose you want to do any training?"

Lysander smiled at him, "I thought you'd never ask."

*

Back inside the cafeteria, Lan stood waiting by the door while Erica bought a small tea for Charmeleon. Every ten seconds or so her hands would tug on the hem of her skirt, and she found herself wishing for the twentieth time that day that she hadn't worn it. She wasn't a part of the White Pod, and all that wearing a miniskirt today would do was bring attention to herself from the Blue Pod. This fact made itself completely clear to her when Suza and a few other girls surrounded her. Even though she knew she was in for some of Suza's verbal abuse, she couldn't help but notice that Suza's posse was half as big as it had been the night she'd forced the makeover on Lan.

"What have we here? It can't possibly be that frumpy little Lan has joined the White posers, can it?" Suza sneered, "That skirt looks horrible on you. I've seen pencils that are wider than your legs."

"Leave me alone, Suza."

"Normally I would, but you see, this isn't about you. This is about the rivalry between Blue and White, which you're obviously aware of."

"If you have a problem with how I'm dressing, we can settle it over a Pokémon battle," Lan said it with a lot more confidence than she was feeling. She had no idea if Suza had a second, or even third, Pokémon, and what they might be.

"Since the problem is between groups, it's only fair we make this a group battle." Suza flicked her curls, "I pick Anna and Cheryl as my teammates, is there anyone here who'd bother backing you up?"

For once Lan didn't feel intimidated in the least, and she laughed, "Of course. All I have to do is pick two." She turned to call for Erica, who was adding a sugar to Charmeleon's tea. She was scanning the crowd for Nikki when she heard Suza's outraged gasp and felt a hand on her shoulder.

"It's been a while, Lan. Could I still count for one of your two?" Jericho flashed her one of his rare smiles before letting it drop from his face and glaring at Suza.

Suza turned up her nose and proceeded out the door with the rest of her group, "I'll see you in the far field in ten minutes."

Lan and Jericho waited for Erica to return, and as soon as she caught sight of Jericho she sighed, "Do I want to know?"

*

Ten minutes was all the time Suza needed to spread the word around the school, and by the time Lan and the others arrived at the far field most of the Blue and White Pods were there, along with a good chunk of the Green Pod as well. Lan didn't have to say how ridiculous it was that three Green Pod students were defending the honour of the White Pod; the entire White Pod and most of the Green one already knew. Nikki had already offered to switch with Jericho, but he'd refused.

The three Green students lined up across from the three Blues, and in between them stood an unknown student from the Yellow Pod. He'd appointed himself to be the referee, and after making sure he didn't have connections to either White or Blue the other students agreed.

"Alright, this will be a three on three matchup. Each student will use two Pokémon, and the last team with a Pokémon standing wins!"

Lan withdrew her Pokèball containing Vulpix from her belt, trying to think of what Pokémon Suza had. She knew about the Machop, but other than that she didn't know. According to Erica, Suza had failed to claim a third PokeProject, so that left one mystery Pokémon. To her left Erica was already gripping her Pokèball, while to her right Jericho appeared to still be choosing between two. Like Erica, he had three Pokèballs on his belt, and Lan hoped that whatever his third Pokémon was it could pack a lot more of a punch than Paras.

"Trainers ready?" The Yellow student called, a megaphone in his hand as he sat on his Pidgeot and oversaw the battle, "Then let this Pokémon battle… begin!"

Lan threw her Pokèball, confident in her relationship with Vulpix. She only hoped that she wouldn't have to use Zubat, though that was rather optimistic.

As she'd thought, Erica had opened with Charmeleon, which was a bit of a shame considering it would leave them at a disadvantage if the other team had water or rock Pokémon. Jericho's pick was Onyx, and Lan suddenly found herself taking deep breaths. The rock Pokémon was a good twenty-five feet from her, but she couldn't help but imagine what would happen if it was to inadvertently give its tail a sweep…

"Lan, relax." Jericho rested a hand on her shoulder, "Onyx would never hurt a person."

Erica didn't bother contradicting him, knowing how important it was that Lan be focussed on the match.

There was a groan from the White and Green section of the crowd, and a triumphant cheer from the Blues, and the three Green trainers looked across the field to their opponents' Pokémon. And froze.

Anna, Suza's new roommate and the girl across from Erica, had just released a Rhyhorn onto the field. Cheryl, the one across from Jericho, had chosen a Tentacruel. And Suza, with a cold smirk directed specifically at Lan, held out her Pokèball and let loose a Golem.

"Hey!" One of the Green students shouted, "You don't have a Golem!"

The Yellow referee used his microphone to clarify, "Neither team stipulated that the Pokémon used had to be their own PokeProjects. Suza's Golem is allowed."

While the White and Green section of the crowd booed and Erica and Jericho tried to think fast about a way to win against a trio with an undisputed advantage, Lan could hear her heart thundering in her ears. There were three rock Pokémon on the field, and she simply couldn't stop thinking of what would happen to her if Golem or Rhyhorn charged at Vulpix, missed, and kept right on going into her. There were no raised platforms like in the Pokémon league, and she would be crushed.

Jericho's hand was still on her shoulder, and he gave it a slight shake, "You have to calm down. The Pokémon fight each other, not people. You'll be fine."

"You've been flaunting that Vulpix for way too long, Lan!" Suza taunted, "Now you get to see how much better a strong Pokémon is to a pretty one! Golem, use a rolling tackle on Vulpix!"

Golem gave a roar and ran forward several steps before going into a roll and approaching Vulpix at a rapid speed. Vulpix growled at it, but had the good sense to dodge the roll without Lan's command. Now Lan's fear was coming true, and she froze, her throat and knees locking in place. Golem cut dangerously close to where the three trainers were standing before turning sharply and heading for Vulpix again.

"Rhyhorn, use body slam on Charmeleon!"

"Tentacruel, hydro pump on Onyx and follow it up with a wrap attack!"

With their own Pokémon suddenly under attack, Erica and Jericho could no longer focus on Lan and turned to shout Charmeleon and Onyx orders, leaving Lan to deal with her fear alone.

"Charmeleon, you're way faster than Rhyhorn! Dodge!"

"Onyx! Defence curl!"

Charmeleon succeeded in dodging Rhyhorn, but Onyx was only halfway into a defensive curl when Tentacruel's hydro pump struck it in the side. It roared and straightened out again in an attempt to shake the water free, leaving Tentacruel with the perfect opportunity to use wrap. Vulpix dodged Golem again, facing the rock Pokémon with a snarl as it rolled away, and was therefore unprepared for Rhyhorn's abrupt change in targets. Rhyhorn's body slam connected solidly with Vulpix, as it brought its horn up into Vulpix's underbelly and sent it toppling over its ridged back.

"Charmeleon, use fire spin and give Vulpix some cover!"

"Onyx, try a bite attack!"

Charmeleon set the grass around Vulpix ablaze, hoping to buy the fox Pokémon time to recover as both Golem and Rhyhorn circled around for another attack. Onyx attempted to reach down and latch onto Tentacruel's jelly-like head with its rock jaw, but the jellyfish Pokémon hunched down to the ground and continued to squeeze tighter with its tentacles.

"Use another hydro pump, Tentacruel!"

The water struck Onyx directly in the chest, and it bellowed as the liquid began to erode its rocky body.

"Lan, you have to give Vulpix a command! It's waiting for you!" Erica took her eyes quickly from the battle to look at Lan.

It wasn't good; Lan's whole face had gone white and she was shaking, her eyes still locked on Rhyhorn and Golem. It didn't help that the two rock Pokémon seemed to have been given instructions beforehand to get as close to Lan as they could while still remaining in the battle area, and were making sure to roar or snarl each time they passed. As the crowd watched, Rhyhorn barrelled towards the flames and put its head down, passing through the blaze easily and slamming into Vulpix once more. Charmeleon gave a concerned call to Vulpix, which Golem took advantage of and rammed into the salamander Pokémon full speed. Before Charmeleon could recover, Rhyhorn body slammed it as well.

"Charmeleon!"

Anna smirked at her, "Who knew your Pokémon was so pathetic without coffee?"

Erica gritted her teeth and clenched her fists, "That is _enough_. You can call me whatever you want, but don't you _dare_ insult my Pokémon." She took one last glance and Lan before stepping in front of her, "Vulpix, listen to me! Follow Charmeleon, both of you head for Onyx's tail!"

Vulpix staggered to its feet with a whimper, but managed to pick up a trot and started to move towards Onyx. The rock Pokémon was still being doused in Tentacruel's successive hydro pumps, and by its shaking it was clear that it wouldn't last much longer. Rhyhorn and Golem rolled and ran to cut the fire Pokémon off, and it was clear that Charmeleon and Vulpix wouldn't make it in time.

Jericho called, "Onyx! Lift your tail two feet off the ground and use a tail sweep!"

It struggled to do so, its tail wavering and beginning to drip water, but it followed Jericho's command and flung its tail towards the four approaching Pokémon with impressive speed. Vulpix and Charmeleon ducked the tail easily, but both Golem and Rhyhorn were hit and knocked off their feet.

"Nice one, Jericho," Erica commented, before pointing to the top of Onyx's head. "Charmeleon, Vulpix, up!"

Charmeleon heaved Vulpix onto Onyx's now-grounded tail and shoved it until the fox Pokémon began running up the length of Onyx's body. Both of them hesitated when they reached the part being bombarded with water.

"Charmeleon, use the tentacles like a ladder and keep running! Vulpix, Onyx's body will shield you! Start biting those tentacles!"

Charmeleon obeyed instantly, but Vulpix turned and looked over its shoulder to Lan. Lan was still shaking in fear, but at the sight of her favourite Pokémon beaten and bruised she nodded as much as she was able. Vulpix began gnawing on the tentacles, and Lan was suddenly glad that she'd given the fox so many squeaky toys to chew. It was certainly proving useful now!

Charmeleon had reached Onyx's head, and Erica shouted, "Now use slash on Tentacruel!"

Cheryl gasped, "Tentacruel, dodge! Block!"

It couldn't do either, as most of its tentacles were still wrapped around Onyx. Charmeleon leapt from Onyx's head and fell towards Tentacruel, its claws gathered together into a wicked spike. After the initial hit, Charmeleon brought its claws apart and started slashing wildly at Tentacruel. By this time, however, Tentacruel was starting to come free from Onyx, and it swept a tentacle at Charmeleon, catching the fire Pokémon in the back and sending it across the field and into the dirt.

Meanwhile, Rhyhorn and Golem had been battering at Onyx's now-weakened body, and with a last weak roar Onyx fell forward, getting a tackle in against Tentacruel as it went. Vulpix tried to leap free of Onyx's back, and for a few tense seconds it appeared to be soaring through the air, but then Tentacruel reached up and wrapped a tentacle around its middle, slamming it into the ground and dousing it with yet another hydro pump.

"Oh! What a devastating round against the Green team! It appears that all three of their Pokémon are… no, wait, it looks like Charmeleon is trying to stand!"

Erica wished he hadn't said anything, as all three of the Blue Pokémon turned and rushed her Charmeleon immediately. Rhyhorn was the fastest, and was lowering its head to toss Charmeleon into the air when a jet of water knocked it off course and onto its side.

"It looks like Jericho's released his second Pokémon! A Wartortle might be just the thing Green team needs to pull off a comeback!"

"Know it all," Jericho muttered, before calling, "Wartortle! Stand in front of Charmeleon while it regains its feet!"

Erica shifted her gaze to Vulpix, who was still lying on the field, "Lan! You have to recall your Vulpix and release your second Pokémon. Come on!"

"But Zubat… it can't fight those rock Pokémon…" Lan protested weakly.

"Then use this." Erica slammed a Pokèball into Lan's protesting hands, "You have a miniskirt on, so he'll listen, and the referee said you don't have to fight with your own Pokémon!"

Lan recalled Vulpix, suddenly ashamed at her behaviour. Maybe, just maybe, with one less rock Pokémon on the field and if the other two stayed away from her, she could do this. She inhaled deeply and tossed the Pokèball into the field, "Okay, let's do this!" It would have been inspirational if it hadn't been a squeak.

"Whoa! The Green team has adjusted fast to their opponents' team, and have come out with two type-advantage Pokémon!"

Ivysaur paused, casting a quizzical look between Erica and Lan, but upon seeing Lan's exposed legs it nodded and waited for a command.

"Ivysaur, use razor leaf on Tentacruel!"

Cheryl gasped, "No fair! You were supposed to use Zubat!"

Tentacruel hissed as the leaves struck it and lashed out its tentacles at Ivysaur, but Lan was suddenly feeling confident and pointed at the giant water Pokémon, "Counter those with vine whip, Ivysaur!"

"Wartortle, hydro pump on Rhyhorn!"

Suza stomped her foot, "No! This is going all wrong! Golem, don't just stand there, use rock throw on Charmeleon!"

Golem jogged to a boulder protruding from the grass and heaved it free, throwing it with all its might at Charmeleon. The fire Pokémon was just gaining its feet, and there was no way it could dodge in time.

"Ah! Charmeleon, fire blast _now_!"

Charmeleon sucked in the last of its air and blew, the fire colliding with the boulder mere feet from it. Though the fire slowed the boulder down, it still slammed into Charmeleon, and the crowd gasped as the whole area around Charmeleon exploded into flame. Several students were already calling out their water Pokémon to soak the grass and prevent the fire from spreading.

"What a nasty hit from Golem! Is Charmeleon finally taken out?"

Lan turned to Erica. The taller girl was clutching Charmeleon's Pokèball to her chest and muttering, "Come on, come on…"

The flames suddenly roared ten feet in the air, and the White-Green crowd cheered itself hoarse as a brilliant white light flared and dimmed, and the newly evolved Charizard rose from the flames.

Suza's pout became more pronounced, "That still doesn't change anything! Golem, rolling tackle that stupid lizard!"

Erica didn't even bother trying to contain the massive grin that spread all over her face, "You're the best, Charizard! And Ivysaur, you're amazing as well," she added hastily. Her Ivysaur gave her a nod before resuming its vine whip attack on Tentacruel, understanding her excitement at this particular moment in time. Erica's grin became more focussed, and she replaced Charizard's Pokèball on her belt, "Alright Charizard, let's test out those wings of yours!"

Charizard leapt into the air and pumped its powerful wings, soaring above the Yellow referee and easily avoiding Golem's tackle.

"Wartortle, stop that Golem with a surf attack!"

Now that its fire teammates were safely off the ground or in their Pokèball, Wartortle moved its claws in a circle and a sudden wave rose out of the nearby river, rushing for the battlefield. It was the turn of the crowd members with Psychic Pokémon to call them out and use them to keep the water in the battling area, and as they did so Lan could see why battles of this size usually only took place in an official arena, with raised bleachers.

She was worried that Ivysaur wouldn't be able to take the water pressure, but it had thought fast and was currently standing on Wartortle's shell as the turtle Pokémon floated on the waves. Rhyhorn had been close enough to Tentacruel for it to wrap its tentacles around it and lift it clear of the water, but Golem wasn't so lucky and instantly went unconscious.

"Tentacruel, set Rhyhorn down and use Acid on Wartortle!"

Feeling it was his turn to offer up a taunt, Jericho called, "Nice to see it knows more than hydro pump and wrap!"

Lan giggled, "Ivysaur, use solar beam on Rhyhorn!"

Ivysaur widened its stance and began to draw in sunlight, and Anna laughed, "Nice try, but you have to charge the move up first! Rhyhorn, trample that plant where it stands!"

Rhyhorn roared and charged Ivysaur, but far before it could connect Erica shouted, "Charizard! Grab that Rhyhorn and take it for a ride!"

Charizard swooped down and wrapped its arms around Rhyhorn before giving a mighty pump with its wings and lifting the rock Pokémon clear off the ground. It gained altitude, keeping its head clear of Rhyhorn's scything horn the whole time.

Suza replaced Golem in her belt and glared down at her own Pokèballs. She hadn't thought she'd need to use her own, "This is so unfair. Let's go, Machop!"

To her credit, Machop had lost quite a lot of weight since last Lan had seen it, and it immediately began running towards Ivysaur to finish what Rhyhorn had started. Ivysaur's flower bud was glowing a bright gold, and it aimed the tip of the bud several feet below Charizard and Rhyhorn.

"Time to let go, Charizard!"

It did so instantly, and Rhyhorn fell ten feet before being hit directly by Ivysaur's solar beam.

Meanwhile, Wartortle was dodging globs of acid thrown by Tentacruel, and was frustrated that its water attacks were doing nothing.

Jericho shook his head, "Lan, switch?"

"Right." With no rock Pokémon left on the field, she felt like she was floating on air, "Ivysaur, one last razor leaf on Tentacruel should do the trick!"

"Wartortle, skull bash that Machop right back to its ball!"

Charizard landed next to Erica, and it was breathing heavily. She smiled and held up its Pokèball, "You deserve a rest if you want one."

Charizard looked across the field at the Clefable that Anna had just called out of its Pokèball, and then turned back to Erica and nodded. She recalled it, and picked up her last remaining Pokèball. If she threw it far enough, she could make this a three on two battle without even giving Gyrados a command.

Anna pointed at Wartortle, "Clefable, time to use metronome!"

Clefable wiggled its fingers back and forth, and by sheer luck razor leaves shot towards Wartortle and struck it before its skull bash could connect with Machop. Wartortle tumbled backwards, and with an alarmed "Saur!" Ivysaur snatched it out of the way of a fainting Tentacruel with its vines.

"Use it again, Clefable!"

"Gyrados, time for a trademark lard attack! Go!"

Gyrados materialized from the red energy of its Pokèball directly above Clefable, and landed on the fairy Pokémon with a heavy thud.

Suza glared at Cheryl, "What are you waiting for?! Call out your second Pokémon!"

"But… but Suza, we made the team to deal with fire Pokémon, not…"

"Just do it!"

Cheryl screwed her face up in a manner that suggested she very might well cry and threw her second Pokèball onto the field. The Onyx came out with a mighty roar that quickly turned into a gulp as it saw the Gyrados that was easily twice its size. Cheryl called, "You can do it, Onyx! Submission attack!"

"Gyrados, dragon rage!"

Onyx didn't stand a chance. It toppled over instantly at the same time Gyrados gave an indignant roar and rolled off of Clefable, which had apparently used minimize with its metronome attack and followed with thunder wave.

Erica groaned, "That'll take a while to wear off, it's super effective. Sorry guys."

"Don't worry about it. Wartortle, skull bash on Clefable."

Wartortle was only too glad to attack the Pokémon who'd interrupted it before.

"Machop, low kick on that Wartortle! Trip it up!"

Lan adjusted her glasses, "Not today, Suza. Ivysaur, vine whip that Machop and send it flying!"

Suza glared at her, "Use agility, Machop!"

Wartortle successfully made it past Machop and bashed Clefable in the side. While it was a fairly strong attack, it shouldn't have knocked Clefable out, but the fairy Pokémon immediately sat down and began to cry.

Anna gasped, "How mean can you be?!"

Jericho ignored her, "Wartortle, team up with Ivysaur and take that Machop out!"

Suza began jumping up and down, stamping her feet at the same time, "It's not fair, it's not fair, it's not fair! We were supposed to win!"

Ivysaur wrapped its vines around Machop and swung it into another of Wartortle's skull bashes, and the match was over. The White-Green supporters ran onto the field towards the Green team and hoisted all three of them onto their shoulders, while the Blue supporters slunk away with dark looks cast behind them. Lan gave an embarrassed squeak and tried to hold her miniskirt in place, afraid that whoever was lifting her would take a look, but upon glancing down she saw that it was Conrad and Lysander. They grinned up at her and set her on their shoulders, Conrad snapping at a few boys to stop taking advantage of Lan just because she felt like wearing a skirt.

A few feet away Erica turned to Jericho and smirked, "So, battling Pokémon isn't that bad, is it?"

Jericho shrugged, but a smile was playing around his mouth, "You've got a long way to go if you want to convert me fully."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

The three students sat in the Pokémon center, waiting patiently for their Pokémon to be healed. Across the hall on the bench facing them was the defeated Blue team, who couldn't stop throwing foul looks their way. It was true that Suza's opening strategy had been solid, as she'd guessed correctly that Lan and Erica would start with fire Pokémon and somehow knew that Lan was afraid of rock types, but why she hadn't counted on the Green team calling out types with a rock-advantage after their initial Pokémon were defeated, Lan didn't know.

No one was talking, and while the others seemed fine with it Lan was starting to fidget. Erica had her headphones on and Jericho was his normal quiet self, and even the Blue team was too busy glowering over their defeat to talk. Her foot was twisting back and forth against the tile floor, and when her shoe squeaked everyone except Erica turned to look at her. With a muttered "sorry", she stopped moving her feet and started to fiddle with the hem of her skirt instead. This lasted only as long as it took her to remember that she was wearing a miniskirt, and any fiddling would result in her underwear being flashed.

Since the Blue team had class to get to, Nurse Joy treated their Pokémon first, and Suza made sure to put on an extra flounce as she walked to the door with her two lackeys. The Green team continued to wait for another half hour, until finally Nurse Joy wheeled out their Pokèballs with the aid of two of her Chanseys, "Your Pokémon are fighting fit again."

Lan picked up her Vulpix Pokèball and sighed, tucking it into her belt. She was sure that when she released Vulpix, the fox would snarl at her for leaving it without direction during the battle while she'd had her panic attack.

Lysander and Conrad were waiting outside, and Lysander looked like he was going to explode. The doors had barely closed when he leapt in front of Jericho and exclaimed, "I didn't know you had a Wartortle! Can I see it?"

Jericho gave his head a single shake, "It's better that you didn't. The battle was a big strain on its nerves as it is, and I don't want to drive it over the edge."

"Is it afraid of people?"

"No, just forget about it," Jericho sidestepped him and kept walking.

To say that Lysander was crestfallen was the understatement of the century. He stared after Jericho like all his hopes and dreams were leaving him, imagining the Pokémon that would eventually evolve into his favourite of all time.

Conrad tried to distract him by acting out of character and slinging a companionate arm around his shoulders. He forced a wide and slightly unnerving grin onto his face and declared, "Let's all go and get some ice cream while the girls tell us about the battle. My treat."

Lan took Lysander's hand and gave it a squeeze, "Good idea, Conrad!"

The three of them started to walk away, then Conrad realized Erica still had her headphones on and was watching Jericho leave with a scowl. Figuring that his reputation was already ruined for the moment, he wrapped his free arm around her shoulders as well and steered her away.

*

While they were eating their victory ice cream, students from the White Pod kept stopping by and congratulating them on their victory. Recognizing that Lan was wearing a miniskirt and was therefore a participating member in the fashion war against the Blue pod, a few of them even bought cookies and chocolate for both her and Erica.

Lan stared down at the accumulating pile of sweets with wide eyes, "Some of these are from shops in Celadon! I don't think I deserve anything this expensive!"

Erica crunched into a cookie, "Give it a rest, Lan, they're all rich kids; they can afford it."

"Some of us more so than others."

Roselyn was standing directly behind Erica, but if she was expecting her words to guilt Erica into a reaction that wasn't what she got. She stepped gracefully over the bench and sat down, making sure to smooth her skirt before she did so. It was this action that caused Lan to realize she hadn't done the same, and her legs were beginning to stick to the bench. Roselyn switched her gaze from Erica to Lan and back again before flipping her hair over her shoulder and folding her hands on the table.

"Thank you both for fighting against the Blues. They need to grasp what their place is at this school, and it isn't as fashion leaders. The next time you fight them for stylistic reasons, however, I would like for there to be at least one White student on your team. Being defended by three Greens is only charming once."

Lan flushed, remembering how she'd thought much the same thing earlier, but Erica clarified, "I wasn't fighting to defend your place as fashion queen."

Roselyn put a smile on her face, but her tone was threatening, "I beg your pardon?"

"Suza and I don't like each other. It had nothing to do with you."

"Erica," Lan tried to tap Erica under the table, but her leg wasn't long enough, "Roselyn's just saying thank you, there's no need to be rude."

Erica sent an annoyed glance Lan's way, "Of course, how silly of me."

The boys were wisely staying out of this one, as Roselyn's smile had disappeared from her face and her eyes narrowed, "Putting on a holier-than-thou attitude only exposes your flaws. Feel free to continue."

"At least I feel that my flaws are internal and can be fixed with hard work, not a seamstress."

Roselyn's mouth popped open at the insult, but she was quick to recover, "Interesting that you choose to insult someone's sense of fashion, when you so clearly lack one yourself."

"I have a sense of fashion. It's called 'I care more about training my Pokémon than tarting myself up for public approval'."

"Unfortunately for you, there are those of us who can do both. Almost all women are supposed to be able to multi-task," Roselyn turned smoothly and stood up, "it's a pity you can't count yourself among them."

Conrad and Lysander's eyes shifted expectantly back to Erica, but though her eyes were darting from side to side as she tried to think of a response, none was coming.

Roselyn flipped imaginary dust from her skirt and twitched her fingers at Lan in farewell, "Thank god one of you can take a 'thank you' gracefully. We're having a get-together at the far battle arena tomorrow night, as usual. Feel free to come. Oh, and Erica," she put a hand on her hip and regarded Erica coldly, "I'd invite you, but it's all a bunch of tarts and people seeking public approval. You'd hate it."

She walked off to join the other White pod students at the far end of the cafeteria, and Erica glared daggers after her over her shoulder.

Conrad drummed his fingers on the table before offering up a light-hearted, "So…"

"Shut up, Conrad."

"Yup."

*

Soon after Roselyn had left, they finished the treats on the table and headed back outside. It was a Friday afternoon, and there were still a good five hours of sunlight left. The first thing Erica did was release Charizard, and after staring at it for a few awestruck seconds she walked up and hugged its middle. Charizard growled happily and hugged her back.

So softly only it could hear her, she murmured, "You don't care what I dress like, do you buddy?"

It rubbed its muzzle against her hair to assure her it didn't before giving her back a nudge and dropping its shoulder. She scratched her cheek, "I guess I'd be pretty light after that Rhyhorn. Well," she turned to the others, "I'll meet up with you guys later. It's time to see what the school looks like from the air."

They stepped backwards to give Charizard room to take off, and while the boys had to cover their eyes as the wind from Charizard's flapping wings hit their eyes, Lan's glasses blocked it for her and she was able to watch Charizard and Erica fly into the air. The two circled the school a few times before going into a dive, soaring back into the air, and turning north. Lan watched until they were out of sight.

There was silence before Lysander piped, "Well I'm jealous."

Conrad smirked, "You said it. I hope my next Pokémon is a flying type, I'd be able to go anywhere I wanted on weekends."

Lan smiled, "Maybe when Zubat evolves, it will be big enough to carry me places too."

Conrad shrugged, "You're pretty petite, it wouldn't be too hard to carry you." Both Lysander and Lan stared at him, and he put on a defensive frown, "What?"

"You just used the word 'petite' to describe me. That's a complimentary word," Lan pointed out.

While Conrad pouted, Lysander and Lan laughed, until eventually their mirth managed to crack a smile on his face.

"You know what I think we should do?" Lan pointed to the hills in the distance, "We should go and explore those. Nikki and I found a cave when we went hiking there, and we haven't had a chance to explore it yet."

Lysander winced, "Sorry Lan, I promised one of my other friends that I'd go with him to the route twelve beach this weekend. We're leaving in about an hour."

"Oh." Lan turned to Conrad, "Are you busy as well?"

"No, but I'm not exploring any caves with you as long as you're wearing that miniskirt. The wild Zubat will suck you dry."

Lan smiled, "Great! I'll get changed, and then we can see if Nikki wants to come as well! She'd be upset if we explored without her."

Conrad shrugged, "Fine. I'll get some stuff from my room and meet you here in half an hour."

*

It took Lan a while to find Nikki once she'd changed, but Nikki immediately said her goodbyes to the group she was with and joined Lan as soon as she heard they were going cave-delving. Conrad was waiting for them with a slightly annoyed expression on his face, but he wiped it off when he saw them and off they went.

The walk to the cave took about an hour, and probably would have taken longer if Mankey and Vulpix hadn't been using their noses to sniff the spot out. Zubat was hanging off of Lan's backpack, while Kakuna was nestled in Nikki's arms, wearing a Beedrill costume designed to protect babies. She said it was to give Kakuna the morale boost it needed.

Conrad considered keeping Lickitung in its ball the whole time, but eventually he sighed and held out its Pokèball, "I'll never befriend this thing if it sits in here the whole time. Heads up, girls."

Vulpix and Mankey trotted in front of their trainers to defend if necessary, and when Lickitung went for one of them Conrad whipped out an item Lan had forgotten he possessed; the tube of Mace Lysander had handed him the afternoon they'd received their first Pokémon.

"Bad Lickitung." Conrad gave his Pokémon a quick squirt to the tongue with the Mace, and Lickitung immediately howled and staggered backwards, its short arms trying to wipe the burning substance from its substantially larger tongue. Conrad hung the Mace on his belt where Lickitung could see it, "We're going for a walk, so come on."

Nikki performed a quick golf-clap before turning her attention back to the trail, and Lan smiled, "Physical exercise is just the thing."

"Yeah, yeah, believe in the power of my dreams," he muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing. When's that thing going to evolve, Nikki?"

"I'm not sure," Nikki lifted her Kakuna up and inspected its shell. "I was hoping that Zubat could do another licking session with it, I think it's almost ready."

Kakuna made a happy clicking noise from inside its Beedrill suit, then wriggled a little as it realized Nikki's fingers were denting its shell. Nikki sighed and lowered it back into her cradling arms, at which point it started to sleep.

Several times during the walk Lickitung tried to attack the others, but Conrad only sprayed it when it tried to attack him or the girls. After all, he didn't want it to learn not to attack Pokémon, otherwise what would happen when he went to battle with it?

It was just after five o'clock when they reached the mouth of the cave, and Lan hesitated as she stared into the dark, "Maybe it's a little late for this. We should come back tomorrow. What if there are rock Pokémon in there?"

"We won't go very far," Nikki coaxed. "Come on, Lan, you're the one who wanted to do this."

Both Conrad and Nikki took out their flashlights while Lan left hers in her backpack, and with Conrad leading the way in they went. It appeared to be more of a tunnel than a cave, winding back and away into the mountain with no other paths splitting off. This relieved Lan, who didn't have the best sense of direction and was sure that she would get lost if she was separated from the others.

"This is kind of exciting," Nikki whispered from behind Lan, and Lan was about to respond when they all heard a loud 'crunch!'

The floor gave a single large heave beneath them, and suddenly they were tumbling down a steep slope covered with moss. They landed in a heap, both girls on top of Conrad and pressing his face into the muddy ground. At his indignant grunts they scrambled off of his back and pulled him out of the mud, and he gasped for air.

"What was that?" Nikki shone her flashlight up at the ceiling before Lan could stop her, and the air was instantly swarming with hundreds of squeaking Zubat.

They all dropped to the ground, ignoring the mud soaking into their clothing as they covered their ears and closed their eyes. Eventually the noise receded, and Nikki slowly raised the flashlight once more. The ceiling was bare this time, but they could all see the hole they'd fallen through. It was a good sixty feet above them, and with the moss as slick as it looked there would be no getting back out that way unless they started stacking rocks.

"I don't suppose you still have Erica's Ivysaur?" Conrad commented.

"You know I don't," Lan sighed.

Nikki pointed her flashlight down the length of the cave, "There's probably another way out of here. See the water? It's running this way. Besides, I don't think that crunching noise was natural." She cast around the area and eventually found what she was looking for, "See? Broken wood."

"Maybe someone boarded that hole up a long time ago and the wood rotted. It was probably a gap-bridge so people could keep going along the tunnel up top." Conrad got up and shone his flashlight around as well, "As I see it, we have two options. We can send Lan's Zubat back to the school for help while we try to climb out of here, or we can keep going and hope there's another exit down here that we're big enough to fit through."

"Let's take a vote," Nikki suggested. "Close your eyes. Raise your right hand for staying here, and your left for continuing on."

They did so, and waited a few seconds before opening their eyes. Three left hands were raised.

Conrad laughed, "Nice to know we're all suicidal. Well, let's go."

As much as they wanted to get started right away, they hadn't counted on the moods of their Pokémon. Lickitung was sitting on the only dry dirt in the area, wiping its tongue clear of mud and glaring at all of them. Vulpix was crouched on a boulder and shivering slightly, the damp mud soaking into its fur. Mankey was trying its best to wipe the mud from the fire Pokémon, and as for Zubat and Kakuna… they weren't anywhere to be found.

Nikki gave a cry of panic and immediately dropped to her hands and knees, searching through the mud for her bug Pokémon. Lan took out one of the last perfume samples from her backpack and sprayed it in the air, hoping to lure Zubat back. Conrad joined Nikki in her search, and told Lickitung to help as well. It crossed its stubby arms and turned its nose up at him. He couldn't really blame it.

"Where could it have gone?" Nikki was starting to cry, "I can't believe I was thinking about exploring and voting and didn't even realize Kakuna was missing! What kind of a trainer am I?!"

Conrad gave her an awkward pat on the shoulder, "A better trainer than I am, that's for sure. You were just startled by the Zubat swarm, that's all."

Lan gasped, "That's it! It must have been the swarm that took Kakuna and my Zubat as well! If we find where it went, we can get our Pokémon back!"

Nikki hiccoughed and wiped her eyes, "You think so?"

"Of course." Lan sloshed over to Vulpix and scooped it up, "I doubt you want to walk through the mud. It's up to your neck." Vulpix shook its head and settled into her arms without a single growl.

Mankey scuttled over to Lickitung, always the friendly one, and narrowly avoided its dirt-crusted tongue. It gave the stubborn pink Pokémon a few tugs on the arm before snorting and ambling after the trainers, and it was only when Lickitung realized Conrad wasn't going to call after it or summon it back that it got up and waddled after them.

*

Conrad's flashlight was clogged with mud, so Lan was leading with hers. They followed the muddy stream deeper and deeper into the hillside, and they all got the feeling that a large amount of rock and earth was above them. Everything had gone strangely quiet.

Nikki shone her flashlight at the walls, slick with condensation, "I don't know if I would go this way, if I was a Zubat. They don't live far underground, just in caves."

"If they did go out the hole we came through, we wouldn't be able to follow them anyway," Conrad pointed out. "Don't worry, Nikki, we're going to find Kakuna."

"What if they drop it? It can't handle being handled roughly!"

Conrad sighed and took her hand, giving it a squeeze. Not to be outdone, Mankey held her other hand. The two exchanged a brief glare behind her back. A dozen feet behind them, Lickitung let out an annoyed grunt and aimed its equivalent of a pout at Conrad, who ignored it completely.

Out in front, Lan noticed a change in the air. She stopped and waved a cautionary hand at the others. Even from where they were standing, they could hear soft squeaks and the rustling of many wings. Nikki pulled free of Conrad and Mankey, and edged up beside Lan, scanning the floor of the cavern. The stream swerved off sharply to the right, leaving most of the floor dry, and in the far corner she saw at least a dozen Zubat fluttering around something on the floor.

That was as much as she could take. She raced out of the cover of the tunnel towards the group, slinging her backpack from her shoulders as she went, and screamed, "Get away from my Kakuna, you beasts!"

There was an explosion of shrill squeaks as the many Zubat dropped from the roof once more and started swirling around the room. Nikki charged through them, swinging her backpack with all her might, and Mankey raced after her with its fists flying.

Lan set Vulpix down and pointed at the Zubat swarm, "Use fire spin, Vulpix!" While it did so, she ran to the side and sprayed more perfume on the wall of the cavern. It wasn't exactly progressive to Zubat's training, but right now getting it back was more important.

Conrad turned to Lickitung, "Use your tongue to double-slap the Zubat!"

It ignored him.

"Oh, well this is an improvement. Now instead of blindly attacking everything, you're not attacking anything. Fine, I could probably take out more of these things by myself!" Conrad followed Nikki's lead and took off his backpack, swinging it at the low-flying Zubat.

Meanwhile, Nikki had reached the group of Zubat and dropped her backpack. She grabbed two and pulled them away, throwing them behind her and grabbing more. They started to bite her hands, and even though they were drawing blood she kept going, beginning to see patches of yellow underneath the mass.

"Hang on, Kakuna!"

Mankey joined her, adding punches before it threw the Zubat away, and finally Kakuna was free. Nikki cradled it gently in her arms, tears rolling down her face. Its Beedrill costume was in tatters, and though it had saved Kakuna from direct bites the bug Pokémon still had five visible bite marks. Each one was in a dent from where the Zubat had pressed their faces. All in all, Kakuna looked more like kneaded play dough than a Pokémon.

Conrad jogged up behind her, glaring up at the Zubat. The swarm had decided that the Kakuna meal wasn't as easy as originally thought, and was beginning to fly out yet another passageway high up on the cavern wall. He knelt down beside Nikki and peered over her shoulder, "It is going to be okay?"

Nikki shook her head, "We need to get back to the Pokémon Center as soon as possible. I can't even put it back in its ball; it gets banged up from whenever I walk."

Kakuna turned its head as much as it could and looked up at her. She sniffled and lifted it to her face, and Conrad left them alone. He turned to talk to Lan, and almost ran into Lickitung.

"Well, what do you want?" He snapped.

It blinked at him and stepped aside, but once he was past it turned to Nikki and approached slowly, looking over her shoulder at the Kakuna in much the same way as Conrad had. Nikki lowered Kakuna and sighed, "I don't see why you and Conrad can't get along, Lickitung. If you both stopped thinking you were better than the other one, you'd make a great team."

Lickitung sat down across from her, its eyes still on Kakuna. Very slowly, it rolled out its tongue and gave Kakuna a nudge, leaving yet another dint in the bug's shell. Nikki was about to reprimand it when Kakuna gave a shudder, and suddenly the whole cavern was filled with bright light as Kakuna finally evolved.

Across the cavern, the bright light illuminated a small lump against one of the walls, and Lan ran to it. Zubat hadn't been treated any better than Kakuna by the other Zubat, once they'd realized it wasn't one of them. It gave a relieved squeak as Lan scooped it up, and after giving it a comforting snuggle against her cheek she put it back into its ball.

The light faded, and all three students were plunged into darkness as their eyes struggled to adjust. Lan stood up and turned, flashlight in hand, to look for the others.

"Ow! Lan, point that this somewhere else!"

"Sorry!" Lan adjusted the flashlight and aimed it at the wall next to Nikki, "Congratulations, Nikki!"

Nikki stood up and dusted herself off, "Thanks. I just hope Beedrill's defence is a lot higher than before!"

Conrad looked around for the bug Pokémon, "Where is it?"

"I put it back in its Pokèball. It may have evolved, but it's still really beaten up and I'd rather get it to a Pokémon Center than make it suffer while I look at it."

"Good idea." Lan nodded, "We still don't know how to get out of here though."

"Through there." Conrad took Lan's flashlight from her and pointed it at the hole he'd seen the Zubat go through, "They can't possibly want to go any deeper into the caves, so that path must lead back to open air."

"Now all we have to do is reach it." Nikki put a hand on her Mankey's head, "Mankey, climb up there and see where it leads, will you please? I don't want to get all the way up there and find out we can't squeeze through a tiny hole."

It grunted and climbed up the wall easily, disappearing through the pathway. The wait took longer than they were expecting, but eventually Mankey returned, and from the way it was hopping up and down they knew it had found the exit.

"Alright, it's not going to be an easy climb up there, but if we take it slow we can do this," Conrad adjusted his cap and was about to start climbing when he remembered Lickitung and took out his Pokèball, "It will be a lot less of a hassle if you just go back in here."

Lickitung dodged the red energy and shook its head.

Conrad glared at it, "I'm telling you, your arms are too short to climb. I'll let you back out as soon as we get to the top, how's that?"

It wasn't buying it, and Conrad decided to resort to dirty tactics. He did a double-take and pointed over Lickitung's shoulder, "Whoa, a Graveller!"

Lickitung immediately turned to look, and was instantly summoned back into its ball. Lan crossed her arms, "That was mean, Conrad."

"It can't climb." He didn't bother to add any more to his defence, just started climbing the wall.

Nikki fidgeted, "If someone fell from that height, I don't know what we'd do. Mankey! Wrap your tail around Conrad's arm and help him up!"

It did as it was told, although Conrad had the distinct feeling that it wasn't holding him as tight as it should have been. Once he'd reached the top safely Mankey went back for the girls, and soon they were all travelling down the passage towards the outside. True to his word, Conrad had released Lickitung as soon as they were past the wall, but the pink Pokémon wasn't acknowledging him in any way.

When they came to the exit they discovered another problem; the passage opened halfway up a sheer cliff, and while Mankey would have no problem climbing down the same couldn't be said for the rest of them. This being the closest they'd come to getting back, none of them wanted to turn around, but the longer they stood there the more likely it seemed they would have to do so. As the sun set, they were all sitting with their legs dangling off the ledge, scanning the skyline for any sign of Erica coming back. Or any other trainer flying around, for that matter.

Nikki glanced from Conrad to Lickitung before announcing, "I think that now would be a good time to clear the air. You two really just need to talk to one another."

Conrad and Lickitung looked at each other in annoyance before crossing their arms and turning away, noses in the air.

Lan sighed and adjusted her glasses, which had somehow miraculously survived through the whole afternoon un-cracked, "Nikki's right. The school isn't going to be very lenient with either one of you for much longer, and if you don't make progress Conrad will get kicked out and Lickitung will get reassigned to someone like Suza."

This had the desired effect on both of them; Conrad winced at the thought of expulsion, and Lickitung shuddered as it considered the possibility of Suza. They both hesitated, neither one wanting to be the first to admit they needed the other, but eventually they shook on it and Lickitung squeezed in beside Conrad, sitting down and holding its feet with its paws.

While the girls were busy watching this peculiar method of trainer-Pokémon bonding, Vulpix barked and shot a blast of fire into the air. They all looked skyward and saw the boy who'd refereed the battle spiralling down towards them. A quick scramble away from the ledge enabled the Pidgeot to land, and the boy looked them over with a puzzled smile.

"Hey, I was on my way to Celadon when your Vulpix barked. What are you doing up here?"

"It's a long story," Nikki flashed him a winning smile that somehow shone through all the dirt on her, "but we'd be very grateful if you would even just fly us to the ground."

"I can do one better." He removed a Pokèball from his belt and released a Fearow, "Why don't you come with me, and your friends can get on my Fearow?"

Lan noticed a frown appear on Conrad's face as they were recalling their Pokémon, and wondered if Nikki would be the one to make Conrad stop complaining about the student body seeping hormones everywhere. He couldn't possibly be _that_ hypocritical, could he?


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

It was Saturday night, the night after their ordeal in the cave, and Lan didn't know how she should feel. Erica still wasn't back, and Lysander wouldn't return until the next day. She had nothing better to do than accept Nikki's excited offer to attend the White Pod's get-together in the far arena, but was relieved when Conrad agreed to come as well. It was that night when the two of them discovered they shared a common trait, and made a deal to do everything they could never to indulge that trait again.

The day began harmlessly enough, with Nikki pounding on Lan's room with all the excitement of a ten year old at Christmas and telling her to come outside and see her Beedrill. Lan rubbed the sleep from her eyes and struggled into some clothes before tripping out the door, Vulpix yawning and trotting along in her wake. She knew that if one of her Pokémon evolved she would want to show it off to her friends as well, but a Beedrill wasn't exactly a rare Pokémon. Or so she thought.

They were hardly out the door when Nikki released her Beedrill, and Lan's glasses slid down her nose as she stared at it. Putting it simply, Beedrill looked like it was wearing gold armour. A spiked crest ran along what could only be the helmet, which concealed most of its face save for the lower half of its glowing red eyes. Its body was encased in the same armour, save for its stinger. The two stingers on its front legs were free as well, but all four of its legs looked like they had a hard black casing on them. The finishing touch was its wings, which were shot through with the same black casing and appeared to have serrated edges.

Lan kept staring, slack-jawed, as Nikki explained, "The only thing I can think of is that this is some type of backlash for its lack of armour as a Kakuna. Isn't it amazing?"

Lan nodded, finally finding her tongue, "Doesn't all of the armour slow it down?"

"You'd think so, but watch this. Beedrill," Nikki pointed to a tree at the far end of the field, "fly to that tree as fast as you can, and then come back."

It buzzed and took off immediately, returning less than a minute later. Its flight time hadn't been any faster than a regular Beedrill, but it certainly hadn't been any slower either.

"That's incredible." Lan found herself wishing that her father was here; he'd be ecstatic over this, "Congratulations to both of you!"

Beedrill gave a happy buzz that came out slightly metallic from the helmet, and then flew closer to Lan and tilted its head, looking at her shoulder quizzically.

Lan blinked, "Oh, are you looking for Zubat? It's still in the Pokémon Center, those wild Zubat hurt it pretty badly."

Beedrill lowered its head and stingers, clearly upset at the news. Nikki patted its left stinger comfortingly, "Don't worry, Beedrill, Nurse Joy knows what she's doing. I'm just glad you don't blame Lan's Zubat for what happened to you."

Lan went to comfort it as well, but her Vulpix grabbed her sock and started yanking for all it was worth, a behaviour it hadn't shown in days, "Ah! Vulpix, what are you doing?"

It growled at her, releasing her sock and turning up its nose.

Nikki smiled and shook her head, but knew better than to say anything while Vulpix was still out of its ball. It was obvious to her that the fox was having some serious problems adapting to Lan owning more than one Pokémon. Instead, she looked back towards the school and waved, and Conrad came outside looking as dumbstruck as Lan had.

He stared up at Beedrill, "_That's_ the Kakuna that got hurt by eating food that wasn't mashed up?"

Beedrill narrowed its eyes at him, but Nikki stepped between the two, "Yes. I was just telling Lan that I think the missing shell-strength has showed up in its Beedrill form instead."

"Wow. I wonder if that armour gives it any additional type-resistance in battle?" Conrad noticed the unimpressed look on Lan's face and hastily added, "Hypothetically speaking, of course."

"Of course." Nikki glanced between the two of them before asking, "Are you two doing anything tonight?"

"No," Conrad shook his head, "why?"

"Oh, the White Pod and its party," Lan snapped her fingers. "Roselyn invited me yesterday after the battle."

Nikki nodded and tapped Conrad on the shoulder, "I'm inviting you as well. Please come, it will be a lot of fun having some new people there."

Conrad shifted a little, uncomfortable at how close and personal she was suddenly being, before giving an attempt and nonchalance and shrugging, "Sure. What's the dress code?"

"Nothing messy or casual. These get-togethers are all about feeling good about yourself on the outside." Nikki flushed slightly as she said it, "I know, it sounds snobby, but it really is amazing how different you feel when you make the effort."

Conrad wrapped an arm around Lan's shoulder and adjusted the brim of his hat with his free hand, "We'll be there!"

*

An hour before the party was due to start, Lan found herself standing outside Ginny and Erica's door. She knew that Nikki would be upset that she hadn't gone to her for some fashionable clothes, but for some reason she felt that Ginny was the better choice; she was friends with Nikki, while Ginny was more like a cool and detached fashion advisor. That, and she was half-hoping Erica was back from wherever she'd gone so Lan would have an excuse to duck out of the party early.

Ginny opened the door with a raised eyebrow and a small frown, but as soon as she saw it was Lan the frown shifted into a small smile, "I've been expecting you. To tell you the truth, I'm relieved you didn't go to Nikki for fashion advice. She's a sweet girl, but she can't accessorize anyone but herself. Come in."

Lan trailed behind her into the room, instinctively moving to sit on Erica's bed. While Ginny flipped through hangers of clothes, Lan took in the half of the room that hadn't been smothered in runway fashion. Even though she and Erica had been friends for two months now, she'd never really been in Erica's room. Clothes were tossed in and around a laundry hamper, several empty glasses were on her night table, and off to one side was a naked department store mannequin with sandpaper taped to its legs. Lan had been wondering how Erica managed to stop Ivysaur's lewd behaviour.

"Here we are." Ginny turned to her with a billowy purple dress that tied up in the middle with a white sash. From the waist down it gradually changed from white to pink, ending just above the knee. In Ginny's other hand was a pair of strappy pink pumps.

Lan fiddled with her fingers, "Oh, I don't know about something like that… don't you have any brown dresses?"

"I do," Ginny leaned down level with Lan's face and smirked, "but you're not wearing them. All I ever see you wearing is brown, it's boring. Now, try this on."

Conrad was waiting at Lan's room when she returned, and his eyebrows raised as he took in her makeover, "Wow. You've really committed to this thing, haven't you?"

"You're no different," she pointed out.

This was true; Conrad was wearing a tailored suit and shoes that looked like he'd just finished polishing them. His hat was absent and he'd combed his hair back. Lan thought her nose detected a whiff of cologne, but it was hard to tell due to the amount of perfume Ginny had sprayed on her. Ginny had laughed and told her that it wasn't that much, but for someone who never wore any at all it smelled like an entire flower shop had been liquefied and dumped on her.

The walk to the far arena started like a walk to anywhere else, but as they got closer and began to encounter other people Lan noticed that their postures changed. Both she and Conrad straightened up their backs, kept their eyes ahead instead of on the ground, and stopped scuffing their heels.

"Lan! Conrad!" Nikki met them just outside the arena doors, a large smile on her face, "You both look fantastic!"

"So do you," Lan smiled back. For a brief second she thought she saw some annoyance flash in Nikki's eyes, probably because Lan hadn't gone to her for some fashionable clothes, but the other girl didn't comment on it and led them inside.

Lan had been expecting something similar to dance decorations, but instead there were card tables and punch bowls spaced across the arena. She'd thought that the term "get-together" was just a different way of saying the kinds of parties that she was used to on her floor of residence, but this appeared to be something genuinely different. Off in the far corner, she could now see that there was in fact some dancing, but it had actual patterns to it.

Conrad gave her a nudge with his elbow, "So what do we do now?"

Lan went to shrug, but caught herself, "I'm not sure. Nikki?"

Nikki's attention snapped back to Lan and she took Conrad's hand, "Conrad and I are going to go and learn how to foxtrot. Ginny wants to talk to you."

"She does?" Lan looked to where Nikki had been focussed, and saw Ginny crook a finger at her. She approached the table hesitantly; she didn't know why, but Ginny made her nervous. It was like the other girl viewed her as an antique doll she was restoring, and wanted to show her work off to others.

"For goodness sake, Lan, I'm not going to bite." Ginny stood up and guided Lan onto a chair beside her, "We're playing cards. Care to join?"

"I don't know how to play."

"Good, you can be Timothy's partner. He's been winning nonstop for the past three weeks." Ginny winked across the table at the bespectacled boy and he started dealing the cards. She leaned over Lan's shoulder and pointed, "When you get this card…"

Across the arena, Conrad was feeling out of his league. Unlike many of the boys from his school back in Vermillion, none of the boys here were averse to dancing. In fact, many of them appeared to be better dancers than the girls, and he was on the point of walking away when Nikki grabbed his hands and directed his attention to the pair of dancers in the middle of the floor.

"Every week there's a new dance," she explained as they awkwardly tried to copy the pair's movements, "and the dancers who are the best at it stand in the middle."

"I see." Conrad narrowly avoided stepping on Nikki's foot, "What dance are you the best at?"

She giggled, "None of them, I can't dance worth a bean! Can you?"

He smirked, "Not really."

"Oh good, because I think you just stepped on my foot."

Conrad flushed and sprang away from her, "Let's do something else, Nikki. Can I get you a drink?"

"Sure."

He approached one of the punch bowls and was pouring their drinks when he heard two boys comparing Pokémon. Unable to simply ignore the conversation, he poured slower.

"That fight yesterday opened the floodgates, I'll tell you. I fought three Blue trainers today."

"I know, I went up against two of them as well. The more they try to reclaim their reputation, the worse they're doing."

"The thing that gets me is that they still think the more masculine the Pokémon, the stronger the Pokémon. I took down a Hitmonlee with my Vileplume easily, and I didn't even have a type advantage! They can't…" The boy speaking noticed the glacial speed Conrad was pouring the punch and cleared his throat, "I don't believe we've met."

Conrad set down the punch spoon and nodded at him, "We haven't. I apologise for listening in on your conversation, but I agreed with what you were saying. Judging a Pokémon on appearance alone is a rookie mistake to make."

"So glad you agree," the boy was clearly suspicious, "you having a feminine Pokémon yourself. What was it, again?"

"A Lickitung."

The suspicion evaporated from both boys' faces and they laughed, "Well then you know exactly what we're talking about! Are you planning on creating a team around your Lickitung's capabilities?"

Conrad ignored the voice in the back of his head calling him a liar, "I might. Truth be told, I haven't done much battling with Lickitung yet."

"Rehabilitation comes first," the second boy nodded sagely.

"It took a while for me to get that through my thick skull," Conrad joked.

"How well I know it. When I got my first PokeProject and it wasn't a Dragonite, I nearly stormed to the principal's office to complain!"

"Conrad?" Nikki stepped up beside him and picked up her drink, "I'm going to talk to some of the girls. Are you alright here?"

He nodded, "Perfectly."

*

The night went on, and as Lan continued to improve at cards she was able to focus less on the actual game and more on the conversations going on around her. While the tone of it was light, she noticed that everyone around the table was clearly establishing who their parents were, what they did, and what their connections were. After the fifth round of cards she began to notice that there were expectant gaps being left in the conversation; they expected her to join in.

She didn't know how to do it smoothly, and kept hesitating until Ginny asked her directly, "So Lan, what do your parents do?"

"Well, my father researches Pokémon and sends his reports to the museum in Pewter City. My mother was a painter, but she passed away years ago."

There was a collective murmur of sympathy around the table, before one of the other boys there asked, "What's your father's name?"

"Horace Reeves."

"Really?" A girl folded her cards and leaned in closer, "I've read one of his articles in the latest PokeJournal. He's brilliant!"

Suddenly the table was buzzing, and Lan felt a bubble welling inside of her. She continued, "Virtually any Pokémon he sees inspires him to write. You really have to be on your toes when you work with him, he switches ideas that quickly."

"You work with your father? What do you do?"

"I sketch the Pokémon he's working with." Any other time she would minimize her role in her father's work, but at the moment it didn't feel right to do so, "You wouldn't believe the differences that exist even within a single species."

"Those were your drawings," the girl seemed genuinely impressed. "Why on earth would you want to come here instead of going to an art school?"

"I thought that helping Pokémon and gaining a diverse team would help my father's research. He doesn't travel much, and there are only so many Pokémon types that live around Fuchsia." Not once did she mention that money was an issue; art schools were expensive, and F.O.C.U.S. was free.

"I should introduce you to my cousin," the girl tapped her cards off the table and fanned them out once more, "she runs a portrait painting company, and people are always wanting pictures of themselves with their Pokémon. Her current artist simply can't draw anything besides people."

"That would be wonderful!" Lan felt the expectant pause once again, and added, "I'll try to arrange a meeting between you and my father. I'm sure he'd love to talk about his work with someone interested in the subject."

They went back to playing cards, and Lan got the feeling that she'd just made the biggest social leap of her life.

*

Lan and Conrad walked back to the residence building together, and it was after they'd shared the events of the night that Conrad pulled Lan to a stop by the entrance and muttered, "Did you get the feeling that you weren't acting like yourself?"

"Yes," she sighed. "My whole life I've always found that a certain attitude worked for me, but going in there… I didn't want to be humble, frumpy Lan. And they didn't get annoyed at me for not being modest, either."

"I know. I've never been against telling someone to their face what I was thinking, but tonight I almost felt like I was pandering to their opinions. And I liked it." Conrad shook his head, "Does everyone get like that when they go there?"

"Mostly."

They both jumped in surprise at Roselyn's voice. She walked up beside them and looked them over critically, "Better than I was expecting, from both of you. There's no shame in climbing the social ladder, especially how you two are going about it, and everyone in there is always looking for new connections. A word of advice though, Conrad?" She narrowed her eyes ever so slightly, "If you ever intend to date a girl besides Nikki, never leave her waiting for her drink."

Conrad flushed, but Roselyn ignored him and turned to Lan, "You're welcome at the far arena any time."

She turned on her heel, and with a swish of her skirt she was gone. They remained silent until the doors to the residence banged closed, leaving them along outside once more.

Lan turned to Conrad and sighed, "My whole life I've prided myself on being who I am and not conforming to what's popular."

"Selling out," Conrad agreed. "That's what we were doing all night. What do you think Lysander and Erica would say?"

Lan fiddled with the hem of her skirt, old habits returning now that she was away from the others, "I don't think we should tell them. We should just say that we went, and leave it at that."

Conrad nodded, "Sometimes half the truth is better than a lie. Alright, let's go to bed. I want to challenge some Blue trainers tomorrow."

*

When Lan woke up the next morning, she found a note slipped under her door. It was issued by the school, and stated than anyone who wanted to attend the dance could be fitted for measurements any time before Thursday. All they would need to do is bring themselves and the Pokémon they wanted to emulate to the main battle arena from 9:00 – 5:00.

Lan glanced between her Vulpix and Zubat, wondering which one she wanted to go as. There was no doubt in her mind that if she went as Zubat her Vulpix would detest her for a week at least, and Zubat wouldn't have the same feelings. If she went as Vulpix, however, she could bet on some sort of prank at the hands of Suza or her remaining group.

She was finishing up breakfast in the cafeteria and looking over her school assignments for the week when Conrad slid in across from her. He ate in silence and then waited patiently for her to finish her work, but as soon as she gave him her attention his excitement swelled and burst, "We're doing a team battle after lunch!"

"Who is?"

"You and me." Conrad grinned, "We have all morning to get our Pokémon used to working with one another."

"Conrad, I don't know if this is such a good idea. I don't even know who we're battling."

"That's the best part. I heard Suza running her mouth about you in the hallway, so I told her that no one talks about my friends that way and I'd battle her to settle the matter. She said that it would be mean for a boy to fight a girl, so I told her that if she could find a boy willing to take her side I'd see her in the forest-side arena after lunch. And," he added, sensing Lan's panic, "I made her agree to only use her own Pokémon."

Lan's mouth dropped open, "Conrad, I don't know whether to thank you for defending me or hit you over the head for being an idiot. I'm trying not to get involved with Suza any more than I have to."

Conrad was about to comment that Lan didn't hit people when he remembered her slap outside the PokeProject room, and instead said, "Come on, Lan. It'll be fun."

Lan sighed, "I suppose costume fittings will have to wait. Let's go train."

*

Taking into account the fact that the flier about costume fittings had just come out that morning, Lan was surprised by all the students outside with their Pokémon instead of inside at the arena. She could understand that some of them would be trying to decide which Pokémon to dress as, but many of them were casting an eye around in a decidedly unfriendly manner.

"That fight the six of you had on Friday has really stepped up the number of battles on campus," Conrad observed. "I guess people saw what your Pokémon are capable of, and they realize that they have to step up their battle training if they want to win in the Pokémon tournament coming up."

Lan nodded, but then frowned, "I don't actually know when that tournament is. Nikki just said it was some time before Christmas."

"It's next Saturday and Sunday."

"The two days after the dance? That's not very good planning, is it?"

Conrad shrugged, "I suppose that the principal was thinking final projects and exams are coming up after that, along with the end of term PokeProject check. We sign up for which competition we want to be in on Thursday, I think."

"Oh, I don't even know if I want to enter." Lan sighed, "Half the school knows I'm afraid of rock Pokémon now, and they'll all be using them against me. I don't have a good enough Pokémon to counter them."

"Lan, you have to enter, even if it's the single Pokémon competition. Not everyone has a rock Pokémon you know, and that kind of paranoia isn't going to help you be a better trainer. The Pokémon you get this Friday could be a rock type."

Lan shuddered, "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Okay, I think here is far enough."

They released their Pokémon, which were both initially confused as to why they weren't facing one another to battle. Once the purpose of the training session had been explained to them, they reacted in the same way; they snubbed each other.

Lan sighed, "Vulpix, Lickitung would be a good partner for you. Neither one of you is a quitter."

Conrad rapped his knuckles on Lickitung's skull, "You and Vulpix fought to a draw, remember? It's a worthy teammate."

Vulpix fixed Lan with an accusatory glare, and Lan felt a trickle of sweat roll down her neck, "I'm not going to freeze up like last time, I promise."

It obviously wasn't convinced, but trotted up to Lickitung and sat beside it, examining the pink Pokémon with a critical eye. Lickitung did the same, and eventually the two nodded and turned back to their trainers.

They started training by getting their Pokémon to dodge and weave around each other, reasoning that if they had to do a quick target-change in battle this would prevent the two from bumping together. Next they practised defensive techniques, where one Pokémon would pretend to be injured and the other would have to protect it until it was ready to fight again. Lan realized how ridiculous this might look to a casual observer, but on such short notice they didn't have time to do actual practise fights with other trainers.

During a break a large shadow passed overhead, and Lan waved as Erica and Charizard circled around and came in for a landing beside them. Erica hopped down from Charizard's back and let it wander over to Vulpix and Lickitung, "Hey you two."

"We almost died inside a mountain, no thanks to you," was Conrad's way of greeting her. "So much for a few aerial laps of the school."

"While I was airborne I decided there were some things I needed to pick up from home. And what mountain?"

Lan pointed, "Remember that cave I was telling you about when we went on our hike? We went and explored some of it this weekend. Nikki's Kakuna evolved and Lickitung and Conrad started getting along."

"I noticed Lickitung wasn't charging anyone," Erica glanced over at the three Pokémon and snorted.

Lickitung may have stopped attacking humans, but it wasn't fully trained and hadn't been able to resist an attempted tackle against Charizard. Charizard was now sitting on it while snuggling Vulpix against its cheek.

Conrad sighed, "Could you tell it to get off? We have a battle coming up after lunch."

Erica waved her hand in an upwards motion, and Charizard stood, "Who are you battling?"

"Suza and some guy," Conrad adjusted his cap with his characteristic grin, "We're battling in the forest-side arena in an hour, and we're going to win too."

Erica nodded, "I'll be there to watch. I just have to put some stuff away. Charizard, return."

Charizard set Vulpix down and disappeared into the red energy of its Pokèball, and Erica set off across the grounds towards the residence.

Conrad turned back to Lickitung and clapped his hands, "Come on, we still have to go over team attacks! We've got this battle in the bag!"

*

Ginny was still asleep when Erica got to her room, so she tried to be as quiet as possible. She managed to put all of her clothes and her costume away without waking her room mate, but as soon as she went for the door Ginny's eyes snapped open.

"Erica, wait a minute."

Erica stifled a sigh and turned back, "Yes?"

Ginny sat up and hugged her knees through her blanket, "I heard about what happened between you and Roselyn. You're not still angry at her, are you?"

"For telling me what I already know? That I have no fashion sense? No, I'm not angry at her, Ginny."

"You have a sense of fashion, Erica, you just choose not to use it. One of these days I'll catch you at a weak moment and make you over." Ginny tilted her head, "Not any time soon though. Where are you going?"

"Lan and Conrad are battling Suza in the forest arena, and I'm going to watch." Erica hesitated before asking, "Do you want to come?"

"I'd love to. Give me fifteen minutes. Or, if you give me eighteen," Ginny suggested slyly, "I could do something with your hair."

"Fifteen it is."

*

When they arrived at the forest-side arena they had to push to get a spot. Not only was half the student body there to watch the fight, but many of them had their Pokémon out to watch as well. As they passed a Red student they heard him telling his Raticate to study the match and learn the Pokémon's attack patterns for the upcoming tournament.

To prevent being squished by other Pokémon, Erica released her Ivysaur and Ginny released her Arbok. The two Pokémon shared a long look before following their trainers' orders, and Erica rolled her eyes. Ginny's Arbok was the polar opposite of Ivysaur; it had been raised by a prudish trainer who thought that any exposure of skin was disgusting, and had passed that way of thinking on to Arbok. She didn't think the mannequin in their room would ever be the same again.

"Welcome!" The same Yellow student who seemed to be refereeing everything hopped up onto the official referee's box and waved the two flags located there, "This matchup is to be a two vs. two Pokémon match. Each trainer is only allowed one Pokémon, and that Pokémon must be one of their PokeProjects. Now then, let's meet the competitors!"

The four trainers walked out into the arena to the roar of the spectators, and Erica had to give the referee credit; he was behaving like he'd done this for years.

"The first team is trainers Lan Reeves and Conrad Dole!" He paused for the crowd's enthusiasm before continuing, "And their opponents; Suza Bishop and Ellison Gray!"

The only person whose attitude changed at this announcement was Lan, and her steps faltered briefly before she picked them back up. She didn't know why it surprised her so much that Ellison was Suza's pick. After all, she'd seen him around Suza numerous times. She just wished it had been someone else.

Of the four trainers, Suza was the only one openly playing to the crowd, as she giggled childishly and feigned embarrassment at all the attention. Ellison ignored the crowd, Lan wished it wasn't there, and Conrad raised his chin a little higher and smirked arrogantly across the arena at their opponents.

"Trainers, are you ready?"

They all nodded.

"Then let this Pokémon battle… begin!"

Lan and Conrad threw their Pokèballs as one, and their Pokémon immediately went into fighting stances when they came out.

"Once again we see Lan's Vulpix called into action, and it looks like it's been doing some training with Conrad's Lickitung. What will their opponents call to the field?"

All eyes were on Suza and Ellison, who technically should have released their Pokémon by now. Finally they threw their Pokèballs in a poorly coordinated toss, and the two balls actually bounced off of one another before clicking off the ground and releasing their Pokémon.

"Suza uses her Machop once again, and it's going to be complimented by Ellison's Pikachu. This looks to be a fairly even battle, as long as Lickitung stays clear of Machop's fighting techniques. Who will be the one to make the first move?"

It was Pikachu, who not-so-subtly moved to stand slightly behind Machop. This was greeted with laughter from the crowd, and in the stands Erica shook her head, "Ellison shouldn't be battling that Pikachu yet. As if the battle pressure isn't enough, this crowd is going to make it self-conscious and even more upset."

Ginny shrugged, "Suza should have picked someone else to be her champion."

Conrad and Lan both pointed across the ring at the other Pokémon and ordered a double attack. With its superior speed, Vulpix went first, and targeted Machop with flamethrower. Lickitung followed up with a skull bash, sending Machop head over tail to the end of the arena. Pikachu squeaked and backed away, its tail beginning to shake. The crowd continued to laugh.

"Alright Lickitung, body slam that Pikachu!"

Lickitung obeyed instantly, and Pikachu flew several feet through the air before hitting the floor, bouncing twice, and sliding to a stop beside Machop, which was struggling to its feet.

Suza gritted her teeth, "Machop, use your karate chop on Lickitung!"

Machop ran at Lickitung with admirable speed for a Pokémon that had started the school year obese, but long before it could connect Vulpix intercepted with a quick attack.

"Lickitung, Vulpix can handle Machop. Skull bash on Pikachu!"

"Pikachu, counter that with a swift attack!"

Pikachu managed to send out several stars before Lickitung got too close, and suddenly the little mouse was running back across the arena to Ellison. It pawed at Ellison's shoe and whimpered, and Ellison looked down at it while the majority of the crowd continued to laugh. For a moment his mouth went hard, and it looked as though he was about to kick it away, but then he knelt down and tucked the mouse into his jacket.

"It looks like Pikachu is out of the battle. Will Machop be able to pull off an incredible turnaround?"

The crowd knew the answer to that one. Less than a minute later Machop was on the ground, its eyes spiralling as it fainted.

The referee raised the flag, "Machop is unable to battle. Victory goes to Lan and Conrad!"

Lan watched Ellison turn and walk away, and she hung her head. This wasn't a battle she would ever be proud of.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen

As the week progressed, the measurements arena began filling up with students and their Pokémon. Some students went back multiple times, still not entirely sure which Pokémon they wanted to go as. Some, like Conrad, had their measurements taken but withheld on their Pokémon, hoping that whatever new Pokémon they received on Friday would be better than the ones they currently owned.

"Lickitung's a good fighter," Conrad admitted, "but there's no way I'm going to the dance dressed as a fat pink Pokémon. None."

The organizers told him that they would take a picture of his new Pokémon on the Friday afternoon and send it to their store in Celadon city, but he would have to travel there himself to pick it up.

So it was that Conrad set his tray down next to Erica on Wednesday afternoon and gave her the biggest smile he could muster, "You know, Erica, I'm really glad we've become closer friends. And yes, I do want something from you."

"I thought so. What is it?"

"They're willing to make me a costume of my new Pokémon, but I have to go and get it myself, and there's no way I can get to Celadon and back before the dance starts on my own. The only way I could do it was if I could fly there."

"You want to borrow Charizard."

"Yes." Conrad paused, his head subconsciously tilting as he thought about their conversation. "You know, I'm glad we can be so straightforward to each other. I would have had to butter the other two up for ten minutes before I could ask."

"I didn't say yes yet," Erica poked at a questionable substance with her fork, "but I suppose I will. No battling."

"Straight there, straight back." Conrad promised, "How long do you think it will take?"

"Charizard and I flew to Saffron in three hours, so I'd say… three and a half both ways?"

"And the dance starts at eight," Conrad groaned, "I'll never make it back in time. Unless…"

*

Lan was just exiting the measurements arena when she saw Conrad standing against the far wall, obviously waiting for her. She strolled over with a smile, "Hello. Are you excited about the dance?"

"I sure am." Conrad pushed off the wall and walked beside her, "You know, Lan, I'm really glad we've become closer friends."

"Me too." Lan adjusted a strap of her backpack, "It's so nice having a circle of people you can trust."

"It is," he agreed. "I know when I first met you I was a bit of a jerk, but I honestly feel that I've changed. I mean, we really worked well in that battle on Sunday, didn't we?"

Lan's face fell, "We did."

"What's wrong?"

"I know that we won the battle, but I feel so bad for Ellison's Pikachu. It clearly wasn't ready to fight other Pokémon, and all we did was make its problems worse." She bit her lip. "Didn't you hear it whimpering? I've been thinking about it all week."

"Lan, it's not our fault that it happened. We didn't know Ellison would battle with a Pokémon that wasn't ready."

"It's the only Pokémon he has."

Conrad felt a sense of relief that he wasn't the only one, "Well then, we didn't know that Suza would choose him as her partner. It's a Pokémon battle, not a date; you have to pick a partner that can support you."

Lan nodded, "You're right."

"So cheer up, Lan. You've got your measurements done, your Pokémon picked, and I'm about to buy you an ice cream."

Lan smiled, "You're acting awfully nice today."

"Well I wasn't going to buy you anything, but you seem a little down about the battle, and since I was the one who set it up I feel partially responsible."

"Thank you. Have you had your measurements done yet?"

"As a matter of fact, I have, but I haven't had pictures taken of Lickitung yet. They told me that I can use my Pokémon I get this Friday instead, but I'll have to go to Celadon to get the costume myself."

"Oh dear, I don't think you'll be able to make it there and back in time."

"Erica's letting me use her Charizard, actually." Conrad put a wistful expression on his face, "The only problem is, it's a seven hour flight in total, and there's no way I could get there and back before the dance starts without leaving class early."

"Wow, that's nice of Erica." Lan thought about it, then suggested, "I still have my class-skip card from when we went on that hiking trip. You can use that if you want."

"Really?" Conrad barely hesitated before wrapping his arms around Lan in a hug, "Thanks, Lan! You're amazing!"

"Do my eyes deceive me, or is Conrad showing affection?"

Erica and Lysander were standing outside the doors to the cafeteria, and Lysander turned to her, "You know what this means?"

"What?"

Conrad's eyes narrowed, "Don't even think about…"

"Group hug!"

*

After class on Thursday morning, the four of them walked out onto the main green and sat down. The signups for the upcoming tournament were at four o'clock, and there were morning class students battling each other all across the grounds, making a last-minute decision on which of their Pokémon were battle-ready and which ones should stay in the stands.

"This is really dumb," Conrad declared, pitching backwards onto the grass and folding his hands behind his head. "Why would they have a tournament the day after we get a new Pokémon? Why not wait until the following weekend? Or let us sign up tomorrow afternoon? I might be able to enter the Level Two competition."

"My guess is that they want to prevent students from leaping into battle with Pokémon that aren't ready." Erica leaned back and looked at the clouds, "Although we already saw that didn't stop Ellison. What an idiot."

"I'm sure he had his reasons…" Lan mumbled.

"So, what level is everyone choosing?" Lysander nudged Conrad with his toe, "I already know you."

They all ignored Conrad's resulting glare, and Erica tossed a Pokèball from hand to hand, "I'm thinking of going into Level Three. All of my Pokémon listen to me, and they're pretty powerful to boot. I think I have a good shot at the prize."

"Yeah, well, some of us got easier Pokémon to train than others." Conrad glowered.

"I'm going in the Level One competition as well, Conrad," Lysander tried to stop an argument before it started. "Exeggcute don't want to battle, and Sandslash doesn't know anything. It's down to Staryu." He smiled at Lan, "What about you?"

"I don't think I'm going to sign up." She tried her best to ignore the shocked stares they were giving her, but ended up defending herself, "I already told Conrad why. Until I have a water or grass type, I'll be too afraid of other students using rock types against me, and they all will because they know I'm scared of them. I'll cheer you all on though."

"How did Suza even find out that you're afraid of rock Pokémon, anyway?" Erica replaced her Pokèball and scowled at the ground, "It's not exactly something that you announced to the world."

"I don't know," Lan sighed, "but it sure gives her leverage over me. Thank goodness you have an Ivysaur and Lysander has a Staryu."

"You bet!" Lysander winked at her, "And when we graduate from the academy, if you still don't have a water Pokémon I'll take you on a trip to Cinnabar Island and you can catch one there!"

Lan smiled around the circle at them, glad that they weren't forcing her to compete. In truth, she was a little disappointed in herself, but she knew that it was better for her to take a pass at a prize instead of letting down her Pokémon again. With the dance and a new PokeProject both arriving the next day, she decided that she was getting enough excitement this weekend.

They lounged around a while longer, and then Lan pulled out her homework. This was the silent signal for the rest of them to do the same, and soon the four of them were working away on the less pleasant part of their schooling. Only when the large clock at the center of the campus struck four did they realize they should have lined up for the tournament signups long ago.

It was a scramble to get there, and the building was crammed full of students and tournament volunteers. A large group of students was standing at the far end of the room, staring at three glass cases. Not wanting to push their way to the front, Conrad and Lysander shared a look before hoisting Lan onto their shoulders and getting as close as they could.

"It looks like the prizes for the different Levels," she relayed down to them. "Level One is a TM of some sort, Level Two is an HM, and Level Three," Lan adjusted her glasses, "is an evolution stone!"

Lysander almost dropped her, "Which one?!"

"I don't know."

Erica took this as her cue, and started shouldering her way through the crowd. Several students glared at her, but recognized her as the girl who owned both a Charizard and a Gyrados and let her through. In a minute she was back, and there was a small frown on her face, "Sorry, Lysander, it's a leaf stone. The HM is Fly, and there's a note under the TM that says the winner will get a TM useable by one of their current Pokémon."

Lysander was crestfallen, but Conrad frowned, "Wait a minute, Charizard can already fly, and carries people around as well. What would using that HM do?"

Erica shrugged, "Maybe it flies faster? Let's sign up and get out of here, I'm getting sick of people posturing."

She turned and headed to the Level Three sign-up, which had a noticeably shorter line than the other two. The bulk of the students were entering the Level Two competition, and Lan saw Conrad subconsciously wander closer to that line before checking himself and joining Lysander in the Level One line instead.

While they were signing up she looked around to see if anyone else she knew was registering. Suza was several places ahead of the boys in the Level One line, and Lan could see Jericho just finishing signing up for the Level Two competition. Roselyn was also in the Level Two line, along with Nikki and Ginny. She couldn't see Ellison anywhere.

Suza noticed Lysander when she'd finished signing up and was passing by, and giggled coyly, "I didn't know you would be in this competition, Lysander! Don't you have three Pokémon to battle?"

Lysander grinned, "I have three Pokémon, but two of them aren't really ready for battle yet. Are you entering your Machop?"

She giggled again, "I guess you'll see!" She tossed one of her pigtails and turned to go, shooting a venomous look at Roselyn as she went. Roselyn turned her nose up ever so slightly and promptly ignored her. This only made Suza more indignant, and she flounced out of the room with her group of friends.

The others continued working their way up the lines, and as Lan watched she could see the confrontation coming. Roselyn and Erica finished signing up at the same time, and they both scanned the crowd before moving towards her. She couldn't very well escape, so she stood there and hoped that one of them would be distracted. They weren't. Roselyn exited the crowd at the same time as Erica, and only when they were five feet from Lan did they notice one another. Both girls stopped, glared at each other, took another step towards Lan, and stopped again. It was clear they were testing to see which would back down first, but Lan didn't see either one giving way. Roselyn's arrogance was matched by Erica's stubbornness.

Conrad and Lysander edged free of the crowd as well, but took one look at the girls and snuck back in again. Lan made a mental note to criticize their masculinity later.

"Lan," Roselyn turned from Erica with a raised chin, "I just wanted to say again how pleasant it was to have your company at the party last Saturday. Several of the girls were talking about how they wanted to pay you to sketch them."

She could hardly ignore her, "It was really fun playing cards. Maybe I can do some drawings after the break, I don't know how much time I'll have with exams coming up."

"Of course," Roselyn's smile somehow managed to send warmth to Lan and a challenge to Erica at the same time. "We're having a get-together after the dance tomorrow night. You should come."

This was too much for Erica, who put a shoulder between Lan and Roselyn, "We've already made plans for tomorrow, actually."

"Oh really?" Roselyn directed her question to Lan, "What are your plans?"

Lan swallowed, "We're going to, um, get together and…er…"

"Go stargazing." Erica supplied, "Lysander's Exeggcute knows all the constellations."

"You really should listen to the weather forecast." Roselyn checked her nails, "Unfortunately for you, it's going to be overcast most of tomorrow night. I suppose that leaves you free, Lan."

Both girls went silent, and Lan realized with dread that they were expecting her to choose. Disgusted with her indecisive nature but unable to change it on the spot, she found herself trying a compromise, "Why don't well all go to the get-together? I mean, Conrad's probably already been invited by Nikki, and Lysander gets along well with anyone, really."

This didn't sit well with either of them. Roselyn was too polite to tell Lan to her face that she didn't want Erica to come, and Erica didn't want to go in the first place.

"We'll see," was the best Roselyn could finally cough out, before flicking her hair at Erica and leaving the room.

Erica turned to Lan, her face hard, "Lan, I really don't care who you hang out with, or whose parties you decide to go to when I'm not around. But don't ever try to invite me to one of her parties again."

She turned on her heel and stormed off, leaving Lan feeling lower than she had in a long time. Conrad and Lysander came out of the crowd again, both with guilt written all over their faces, and Conrad supplied, "We heard it all. Sorry Lan."

Lan tried her best to hold her head high like the other girls, but her chin was already wobbling, "Thank you so much for your tremendous support. I couldn't have done it without you."

Lysander winced, but Conrad put a consoling hand on her shoulder, "Erica's just in a snit right now, you'll see. She isn't used to having someone in her life like Suza is in yours."

"But she doesn't like Suza either," Lan protested. "I like Roselyn."

"So do I, and so does Lysander," he glared at the other boy, daring him to contradict him, but Lysander remained silent. "Just relax, Lan. Erica's your friend, and it's not you she's angry at. Remember that."

Unfortunately, Lan had a feeling he was wrong.

*

"Ginny, I'd like to borrow your Arbok."

Ginny looked up from the fashion magazine she was reading with a raised brow, "Why? Have you started a war on skin exposure?"

"No, I just need an ear I know will be sympathetic and able to go for a walk with me without attracting too much attention."

Ginny abruptly set her magazine down and hopped off her bed, "I'm here for you, roommate. Let's go."

Erica hesitated, "I'm not sure you'd be the best person, Ginny. Most of my ranting is aimed at Roselyn."

Ginny wrinkled her nose, "That's not good, I thought you said you weren't mad at her any more for the fashion thing?"

"There's been a new occurrence. I know you and Roselyn are close, otherwise I would have asked you to be my shoulder to cry on."

This was followed by a smirk, but Ginny took it seriously and took Erica's hands, putting the Pokèball in them, "The best thing you can do is get this off your chest and not brood over it. I'll talk to Roselyn and get her to lay off."

"Thanks." Erica hesitated, but then offered, "When I'm feeling better, I may have to let you give me a makeover."

"Feel better soon then." Ginny released Erica's hands and went directly to her closet, flipping through clothes and announcing, "The first thing I'm going to do is get you out of all that purple."

"I'm not better yet."

"I know that, dear." Ginny waved her out the door, "I'm preparing. Enjoy your walk."

*

"…and it just irritates me that one of my friends would suddenly become a fashion slave. For no reason besides getting constant praise and attention. Can you believe that?"

"Bok."

"Yeah, that's right. Bok."

Erica rammed her hands in her pockets and kicked a loose stone on the path. She and Arbok had been on the forest trail for a good forty minutes, and she'd finally run out of steam. The whole time the snake Pokémon had listened and made the appropriate comforting hisses, and it seemed more relaxed than usual. Maybe because at the moment all it could see of Erica's skin was her face and upper neck.

After walking a few minutes in silence, Erica glanced over at Arbok and wondered what it would be like if she'd drawn its Pokèball from the bin instead of one of her other ones. Immediately after this she chided herself, feeling the weight of her three Pokèballs with guilt. It said a lot about her own insecurities as a trainer that she was talking to someone else's Pokémon instead of one of her own. When it came down to it, she really should have talked to Ivysaur instead. Charizard was too large and tended to attract attention, Gyrados couldn't walk along the path, but Ivysaur needed more rehabilitation and the monologue she'd just exposed Arbok to probably would have helped.

She glanced at Arbok again, this time wondering how close it was with Ginny. If it was completely loyal it probably would have stuck up for Roselyn, as she was one of Ginny's best friends, but it seemed only too willing to listen to Erica's merciless criticizing. Did Arbok wish it had a different trainer, or did it just like Erica more than Roselyn?

"Hey, you!"

Erica turned to the boy with a raised eyebrow, but apparently lacking in manners was another of Arbok's pet peeves and it flared its hood and hissed at him. Erica put a hand on Arbok's hood and asked the boy, "What do you want?"

"Let's battle!"

"I'll pass, thanks."

"What? The tournament's in two days, you can't pass!" He readied a Pokèball and grinned, "I've been on a winning streak all day, and I'm not going to give up now! Let's go, Kingler!"

Erica and Arbok exchanged an exasperated look before she took out her Ivysaur's Pokèball and tossed it in front of her, "Fine. What Pod are you from, again?"

"Blue."

"Why does that _not_ surprise me?"

Ivysaur stretched its back legs in an exaggerated movement when it came out, letting Erica know that it hadn't been free in a while, but then it looked over its shoulder and saw Arbok next to her, "Saur?"

Now she really felt guilty, "We were just talking, Ivysaur."

Ivysaur turned its nose up at her and sat down.

"Look, I'm sorry, but I needed a sympathetic ear and I didn't think you'd be the right one to ask."

It didn't move.

"Thanks for proving me right," she muttered.

"Hey! Are we going to battle or not?!" The boy and his Kingler looked quite put out, "If you haven't trained your Pokémon enough yet, you shouldn't be using it."

"I didn't even want to battle in the first place!" Erica wound up and booted a rock with all her might, "Why is everyone against me today?!"

The rock flew the distance between her foot and Kingler's body, striking the crab Pokémon in the forehead. It blinked, but then its eyes narrowed and bubbles started foaming at its mouth. Ivysaur turned back to her and tilted its head.

"What?" She snapped, "I'm frustrated. And if I were you, I'd be facing the other way."

Kingler was charging Ivysaur's exposed back, its massive claws raised for a crush attack. Ivysaur just gestured to Arbok, clearly unhappy with the snake's presence.

"You're impossible, you know that?" Erica took out Arbok's Pokèball and summoned it back, "Thanks for listening, Arbok."

Kingler's claw closed around Ivysaur's body, and suddenly both plant Pokémon and trainer were paying full attention to the battle.

"You'll never get far in the tournament if you get distracted by emotional confrontations!" The boy mocked, "Keep up the vice grip, Kingler!"

Ivysaur struggled, its face twisted in pain as the claws dug deeper, and Erica thought through Ivysaur's moves as fast as she could, "Ivysaur, try to use your vines! Poke it in the eye!"

"What?! Hey, that's not fighting fair!"

"Well maybe you shouldn't ambush a girl and demand a fight when she's going through emotional turbulence!" Erica returned.

Ivysaur followed her instructions and delivered a fierce jab to Kingler's eye. The crab immediately released it and staggered backwards, blinking furiously.

"Now use razor leaf, Ivysaur."

It raised its chin, making it clear that it was still annoyed at her, but did as it was told. The Kingler twitched and collapsed onto the ground, and just like that the fight was over.

"Here's hoping you're not in the Level Three competition," Erica quipped, then knelt and placed a hand on Ivysaur's bulb. "We need to talk, I think."

*

After returning Arbok to Ginny and taking Ivysaur to the PokeCenter, Erica walked out to one of the hills overlooking the school and released her plant Pokémon again. She spread a blanket and set out some Pokechow before reiterating everything she'd told Arbok, from start to finish.

Ivysaur was giving her a dubious look, and she sighed, "Now you see why I thought you wouldn't want to listen? I don't want to be criticized right now, I just need someone who's firmly on my side."

In response Ivysaur crawled onto her lap, and used a vine to press the release buttons on both Charizard and Gyrados' Pokèballs. Once the two Pokémon were out it talked to them in rapid PokeSpeech, leaving Erica to sit and wonder what exactly it was saying. Once Ivysaur was finished talking, Charizard leaned over and nuzzled Erica's jaw, while Gyrados leaned in and bumped her as affectionately as it could without knocking her over.

Erica smiled and put a hand on Ivysaur's head, "I really should have just talked to you in the first place. Sorry."

It would have been a happily emotional moment, had not Gyrados caught sight of the Pokechow and bowled them all over as it lunged for the food.

*

Halfway through their afternoon classes on Friday, Lan passed her class-skip card to Conrad and Erica tossed him Charizard's Pokèball. He presented the card to their teacher with a flourish and promptly raced for the door, leaving the rest of the class to wonder what Pokémon he would get. Fifteen minutes later they all turned to the window as Charizard took flight, and Lan noted Conrad's elated expression with happiness. Whatever Pokémon he'd chosen, he was ecstatic.

When the rest of them finished class at the regular time, Lan packed up her books and took a deep breath. Her final PokeProject of the semester awaited her. Before she could go down and claim it, however, there was something else that she needed to fix. She'd been worried about Erica and their friendship for a full day, for Erica hadn't said much to her since the accident with Roselyn.

Green Pod left its classroom, and Lan tapped Erica on the shoulder, waiting impatiently for Erica to remove her headphones before asking, "Are you alright, Erica?"

Erica smiled, "I'm fine. Sorry Lan, I've been meaning to talk to you about how I acted yesterday. It's not you that I'm angry at, so don't worry about it. Ready to meet your third Pokémon?"

"Yes," Lan felt the knot of tension in her chest leave. She could tell that Erica was still angry, but the fact that it wasn't at her was a huge relief.

From out of nowhere, Lysander wrapped an arm around each of their necks and pulled them in close, "I'm so glad you two aren't fighting! I was worrying about it all last night, and Conrad wasn't helping!"

Erica pulled at his arm, but he wasn't letting her go, "Conrad was worried?"

"Even more than me! Every time I calmed down, he'd start going on about how our whole group was going to break up, and he'd be stuck with new friends who didn't understand him at all, and…"

"You're sure this is _Conrad_ we're talking about?"

"Well it wouldn't be me," Lysander finally loosened his grip, "I have lots of friends who like me for who I am."

"With modesty like that, who wouldn't?" Erica rolled her eyes.

"What?"

"Never mind."

The crowd for PokeProjects was thinner than it had been last time, and Lan realized it was because many of the students already had three Pokémon. Her progress was approved, so she waved goodbye to Erica and Lysander and hurried inside. Her initial plan had been to just walk over and scoop up the first ball her fingers touched, but then she realized that this would be the final Pokémon she would get for another two months and suddenly it was as if she were back to the first Friday of class. Every Pokèball had the potential to be something amazing, and if she just grabbed and went she might miss a Pokémon that she could truly connect with.

Soon she had collected a small pile of Pokèballs in front of her, and she was examining each one with infinite care. The scratch marks on her first Pokèball had delivered her a Vulpix, and while she liked her Zubat she was wishing she'd got a Pokémon with more muscle behind it. Maybe then she wouldn't have to be afraid of rock Pokémon.

Only when one of the teachers came over and started tapping his foot did Lan finally make her choice. It was down to a Pokèball with a discoloured patch on the side and one with the remains of a sticker on the bottom. She chose the discoloured patch, but then took the sticker ball and shoved it into the back corner of the bin, resolving to come back for it next semester.

On her way to the door she crossed paths with Suza, who graced her with a sneer before moving to the bin. Lan didn't know why Suza hadn't picked her PokeProject at lunch, as Blue Pod had morning classes today, but shrugged it off and walked outside. The best thing she could do was ignore Suza, in the distant hope the girl would finally leave her alone.

Erica and Lysander were the only two people waiting outside, and as soon as they saw Lan, Lysander sighed and handed Erica a dollar.

"What?"

"We made a bet to see how long you'd be in there. She won."

Lan rolled her eyes, but held up her Pokèball and smiled, "Let's go and see what it is."

They were halfway across the field when a familiar cute voice called, "Lysander! Wait for me!"

Lysander immediately stopped, but it took Erica and Lan a few more steps to battle with their desire to move forward and decide that it would be worse if they left Lysander to face Suza alone.

Suza was moving across the field at a speed that wasn't a walk, but couldn't be called a jog by anyone who'd ever actually gone jogging. She finally reached them and giggled, "I got my third PokeProject today as well, and I thought that we could all see what we got together!"

"Lysander and I got our third Pokémon two weeks ago. You know that," Erica pointed out.

Suza pouted, "I'm just trying to be friendly."

"You've already used that line before."

"Erica," Lysander chided, "haven't you had enough hostile encounters lately?"

This shut Erica up instantly, and she crossed her arms and resumed walking across the field. Lan smiled at Suza, more for Lysander's benefit than anything else, and was about to politely decline anyway when she caught sight of Ellison approaching. She didn't remember seeing him choosing a PokeProject, and concluded that something had detained him in class.

Suza heard Ellison approaching and, if possible, put an even cuter expression on her face before she turned to face him, "Oh, Ellison! We're all going to see what Pokémon we got, would you like to join us?"

He nodded, but didn't say anything. From the slight roll of the eyes that came from Suza, Lan could only imagine that this was typical behaviour.

The five students reached the edge of the field, and Suza looked around in distaste, "Do you always come all the way out here? Just to see your new Pokémon?"

Lysander nodded, "It's safer that way. Our group tends to get a lot of destructive Pokémon." He turned to Lan, "You're the one who picked your Pokèball first, you let's see what you got."

Lan cupped her Pokèball in her hands, wishing for something that would protect her from rock Pokémon, and tossed it onto the grass. For a moment the amount of red energy had her hoping that it was a big Pokémon, but then it shrunk down to about the size of her Vulpix, and when it solidified she was left looking at a Meowth. The Meowth yawned and stretched out its back, its tail curling forwards and touching the charm on its forehead, and then turned around and promptly began to yowl and claw at Lan's leg.

"Eek!" Lan leapt backwards and threw Vulpix's Pokèball at the feral cat, "Why does this always happen to me?! Can't I have socks without holes in them?"

Meowth sprang backwards as Vulpix emerged from its ball, and the two circled one another with hackles raised. Only when Meowth got too close to Lan and hissed at her did Vulpix stop growling. The fox tilted its head and trotted over to Meowth, the two had a quick conversation, and suddenly they were rubbing heads and Meowth was purring. Lan was about to make a comment about her Vulpix helping her out when the two Pokémon looked at each other, nodded, and both proceeded to savage her socks in unison.

"Hey! Cut it out!" Lan kept hopping backwards, trying in vain to lift her legs clear of the teeth and claws, "Bad cat! Bad! You're making Vulpix regress!"

For the sake of Lan's socks, Erica released her Ivysaur and asked it to hold Lan's Pokémon with its vines. It willingly grabbed the Meowth, but had second thoughts about restraining a fire Pokémon. As soon as Meowth stopped, however, Vulpix stopped as well, and it ducked its head in embarrassment at Lan before sitting down and scratching its chin.

Lan stared down at the ruined cloth on her legs that had once been a fairly new pair of socks, "Isn't this just fantastic? I'm going to be the only girl who asks for socks for Christmas and means it."

Suza was trying her best not to snigger, and once it was clear that Lan's legs were safe for the moment she held up her newest Pokèball and declared, "Me next!"

Lan turned her attention to Suza and froze. Her nemesis was holding the sticker ball, and from the smug look on her face she knew it was the one Lan had hidden. Lan's fists balled up and she felt her teeth start to grind together, but before she could do anything else Suza tossed the Pokèball.

It took much longer for Suza's Pokémon to come out of its ball than Lan's Meowth had, and when it finally showed itself Lan felt a vein in her temple pop with jealous rage. A Growlithe. Lan already had a fire Pokémon, but Growlithe was a more preferable option to a feral Meowth. At least, that was what she thought until the Growlithe hunkered down to the ground and started shaking, staring up at them all with petrified eyes.

"Great, what good is a guard dog if it's scared of everything?" Suza pouted.

Erica couldn't resist, "Well, on the bright side, it'll get along tremendously with Ellison's Pikachu."

Ellison's frown was massive, but he remained silent and released his new Pokémon as well.

Lysander smiled, "Oh hey, a Chansey! They're supposed to be really lucky!"

They all paused, looking at the pink blob, until Suza commented, "That's not a Chansey. It's a really fat Clefairy."

Lan was surprised that Suza wasn't giggling and cooing over the fairy Pokémon like many of the other girls at school would have, but she supposed that the fact none of them could see its face for fat had something to do with it.

Meanwhile, Ivysaur had cautiously set Meowth down, and both it and Vulpix decided to go over and greet Growlithe. They got within ten feet before the terrified dog saw them coming and hightailed it into the long grass.

Suza gasped and threw its Pokèball after it, "Growlithe, return!"

Fortunately for her, the ball landed close enough to Growlithe to recapture it, and she glared at Lan, "What do you think you're doing? Trying to scare my Pokémon to death?"

"They were just trying to be friendly," Lan stated defensively.

Lysander stepped between them, "Who wants to go pick up costumes?"

*

The dancehall that evening was packed with students and their Pokémon, and the costumes that the students wore ranged from one end of the spectrum to the other. Some had elegant dresses and suits patterned like their Pokémon, whereas others had gone with a costume more closely related to Halloween. Outside the hall, Lan and the others were waiting for Conrad to return from Celadon.

"I still can't quite believe you picked Zubat." Erica gave Lan a lop-sided smile, "You know how upset the other girls will be. They all wanted a Vulpix dress."

Lan waved her arms up and down, "I like this one better. It feels more like a costume party."

Her Zubat costume wouldn't have looked out of place on someone half her age, and she'd removed her glasses in honour of the fact Zubat couldn't see. So far she'd tripped over two tree roots and slammed her shoulder off a corner three times. Zubat sat on her shoulder and kept trying to navigate for her, but as she didn't understand PokeSpeech it didn't help.

Lysander had gone for the costume look as well, and he was dressed as his Sandslash. The ground Pokémon was holding claws with him, and looked ecstatic that its master was emulating it. The only part of Lysander that was visible was his face, poking out from his costume's mouth, and he'd already received a hug from a girl in a Tangela costume.

Erica had successfully shocked them all by choosing the elegant dress option, and she'd come as her Gyrados. Her gown was various shades of blue and trailed on the ground, and on her forehead was a tiara shaped like the triple prongs of her water snake. Gyrados was outside in the river with many of the other water Pokémon, but it had roared happily at her choice.

Finally they saw Charizard's outline against the fading sunlight, and from the bulky lump on its back assumed that Conrad had already changed into his costume. He must have provided an unusual sight to anyone who looked up while it was still full daylight.

He landed a fair distance from the dance hall, not knowing that they were waiting for him, and when he finally came into view Lysander uttered a wordless exclamation that was pure envy; Conrad was dressed in a Blastoise costume.

Conrad grinned, "Look at this, isn't it great? Exactly like I wanted it to be. Lysander, what are you doing?"

Lysander was standing unusually close to Conrad, and his eyes were fixed on the other boy's belt, "Well, come on, release it."

They knew that Blastoise was Lysander's favourite Pokémon, but they were still surprised at his impatience and irritation. Then again, this was the second instance of his favourite Pokémon or one of its evolutionary stages showing up amongst friends, and he must have been wondering what he was doing wrong that they could pick the right balls and he couldn't.

Conrad shook his head, "I don't think that's such a good idea, Lysander. You have no idea what my Blastoise's problem is, and I don't want to let it go amongst party-goers. It's really just best if it stays inside its ball."

Lysander, though two inches shorter than Conrad, was inflated by his indignation and suddenly seemed much larger, "Well why don't you tell me what its problem is, and then I'll decide if I want to risk it?"

Not quite sure how to handle Lysander's confrontational attitude, Conrad sent a sidelong glance at Lan. She was nearly as dumbfounded as he was but nodded, "You need to let it out in order to get into the dance, anyway."

Conrad sent Lysander a dark look before tossing his Pokèball onto the grass, releasing the red energy. For a Blastoise, this Pokémon was huge. Not obese, just massive. Its shell alone was the size of a large car, and if Lan curled into a ball she would be the same size as its head. It turned to face them, confused as to why they were all dressed as Pokémon, but upon seeing Conrad its face brightened, its cheeks grew ruddy and it started thumping towards him. Conrad squawked and raised his Pokèball, but before he could use it Blastoise scooped him up and crushed him against its chest in an overly zealous bear-hug. Once he was thoroughly squished, Conrad made a pitiful squeak and Blastoise set him down again.

"You see?" He wheezed. "Not a good idea for it to be around people."

Blastoise was looking at him sadly, its arms still held out, and the girls realized that it had been expecting him to hug it back. It started to lower its arms, disappointed, when it caught sight of Lysander. He wasn't saying anything, just standing there with his arms stretched as wide as they could go and a joyous expression on his face. Blastoise hesitated only a moment before lumbering over enthusiastically and lifting Lysander off his feet.

"Hey!" Conrad snapped, "Get back here!"

Blastoise ignored him completely, happy that someone was returning its affection, and Erica leaned over to whisper to Lan, "Something tells me that whatever behavioural problem it had before, this one's going to be much worse."

Seeing the way Blastoise ignored Conrad in favour of Lysander, Lan agreed.

*

Conrad's Blastoise had been only too willing to follow Lysander around for the rest of the evening, so Conrad sent it to the river to socialize with Gyrados and the other water Pokémon. The last image they had of it as they walked through the doors into the dancehall was it attempting to wrap its arms around Erica's Pokémon, while Gyrados obviously thought its shell was some type of snack and was trying to fit the turtle Pokémon into its mouth.

"Charming," Conrad muttered.

The mood in the room was sharply differing. Half of the room was excited about the dance and everyone's costumes, while the other half was clearly more concerned about the tournament the next day. Many of the boys had picked their strongest Pokémon as their costume, and were posturing to one another while others around them rolled their eyes. Conrad was about to join the group and flaunt his costume when he was intercepted by Nikki. She'd defied the White Group's elegance in favour of the costume appearance and come as her Beedrill, and the effect was fantastic. The costume designers had a field day with her Pokémon's unique, armoured appearance, and she looked more like an action hero than a trick-or-treater.

"Conrad! You got a Blastoise this afternoon? Congratulations!"

"Nikki?" It was hard to tell it was her, at first. Rather than having her face framed by the Pokémon's mouth like most other costumes, her upper face was covered in a visor showing off her unusual Pokémon's helmet. Then what she'd said caught up and he puffed out his chest, "I sure did, and we're going to dominate the tournament tomorrow!"

"Good for you. Now come on, let's dance."

"Why do you like dancing so much? We just stand there and turn in a circle slowly."

"Don't be dumb, they're going to start the Pokémon Shuffle soon." She held out her hand and he let her pull him to the dance floor.

The Pokémon Shuffle was simple; everyone who wanted to participate stood in a circle, and one at a time imitated their Pokémon's behaviour and turned it into a dance move. Once everyone had gone, the moves were put into an entire dance that they all performed. Already two distinct circles were forming, one with the elegant outfits and the other with the costumes. Lan and Lysander were already in the circle, having gone straight there after entering the dance hall, but Erica had taken a pass on joining the other circle.

The music started, and the first boy to enter the middle of the circle was wearing a Scyther costume. He made some rhythmic swiping motions with his arms before stepping backwards. The dance turns moved around the circle, and when it was Conrad's turn he went into the center with his chest pushed out and performed a somewhat mechanical strutting move that suited his Blastoise perfectly. The only thing he could have done better would be to run up and hug someone. From the look on Lysander's face it was clear he'd been wondering if Conrad would.

Lan wasn't sure what to do for her dance move, but when it was her turn inspiration struck suddenly and she made a swooping motion with her arms that ended with miming running full into an invisible wall. Her move was responded to with laughter, but it was of the friendly and appreciative kind. No matter how silly some of the dances were, no one was in the mood to criticize. Lan smiled, though a part of her was sad. Would this same camaraderie be present tomorrow? She didn't think so.

*

While the others danced, Erica stood off to the side of the room and watched. A part of her was regretting not choosing a costume instead of a dress, but a larger part had been baited by Roselyn's comments about her lack of fashion and what it implied about her. Though she did wish she could join the costume group's Pokémon Shuffle; it looked like way more fun than the other group.

"Drink?"

She turned and accepted the punch from Jericho, taking in his costume with a smile, "Well, I'm glad I'm not the only one."

He'd gone for the more elegant option as well, and had come as his Wartortle, "One of my roommate's friends has a Wartortle and came in a costume. I didn't want to look the same."

"Fair enough. Are you ready for the tournament tomorrow?"

"As ready as I'm going to get." Jericho shrugged, "I still think the whole thing's overrated."

"I don't believe you. If you didn't want to battle your Pokémon, you wouldn't have signed up. Lan didn't."

Jericho rolled his eyes, but went back to watching the dancing without commenting further. It was only when the two groups had performed their complete dances that he turned back to her, "You look nice, by the way."

"Thanks, so do you."

Jericho seemed to be debating something inside his head, and finally he set down his cup and gestured at the dance floor, "Do you want to dance?"

Erica raised an eyebrow, "It's a slow song."

"I know."

She considered this before placing her cup beside his and nodding, "Alright."

*

Across the room, Roselyn and Ginny were appraising the different dresses, and most of them were receiving scathing remarks. Unlike the majority of the school, both Roselyn and Ginny had theirs done by a top-quality designer. Roselyn had come as her Goldeen, with long ruffled sleeves and a ruffle around the edge of her knee-length dress. Ginny's dress was patterned off of her Arbok, not that it would approve of the plunging neckline, and was complete with a flaring hood resembling an outfit worn by the western world's Queen Elizabeth.

"Oh, look, there's Lan. Isn't she adorable?"

Roselyn turned to where Ginny was pointing and shook her head with the barest of smiles, "You _would_ say that, wouldn't you? Ugh, it looks like they all came in costume. Still, I suppose as far as the girls are concerned, it's for the best."

Ginny gave her a subtle nudge to the ribs with her elbow, "None of that. Erica is my roommate, and I promised I'd get you to leave her alone."

"Why would you promise something you can't deliver on? Speaking of the fashion disaster, there she is… now…" Roselyn's voice trailed off as she caught sight of Erica walking onto the dance floor with Jericho. Not only was the girl in a dress, but it was of a superior quality to all the others around her. Clearly she too had gone to an alternate source for it.

"Very acceptable," Ginny put in from the side.

"Quiet." Roselyn raised her voice ever so slightly and asked, "I wonder if anyone wants to dance?"

Almost immediately a boy from the Red Pod was standing beside her offering his arm, and she let him lead her onto the dance floor.

Ginny watched her go with a half-smile before taking a drink from a nearby punch bowl and strolling around the room. She wasn't sure whether Roselyn would pay Erica a compliment or attempt to sabotage her dress; when she wanted to be, Roselyn could become the most unreadable person in Kanto.

*

The night wore on, and eventually students started to leave. Most wanted to be up early the next morning in case any last-minute preparations needed to be made, and those who'd just received a new Pokémon that day wanted to greet it properly. Having the dance on the same day hadn't been the principal's smartest idea, as it had consequently led to some students viewing their Pokémon for less than a minute before summoning it back into its ball and running to get ready.

The crowd on the dance floor thinned, but many of the female students stayed. Some were confident that if they just waited long enough, one of the remaining boys would ask them to dance, while others were intent on enjoying the night in preference to the tournament the next day.

Suza was definitely in the former of the two groups. She'd been waiting for Lysander to ask her to dance all night, but every time he came anywhere near her he'd be scooped up by a girl brazen enough to ask. Her Venonat dress should have been cute enough to immediately attract his attention, she'd thought, but apparently Lysander was even thicker than she'd given him credit for. Ordinarily Suza would have no qualms about marching up to him, but things were different at a dance. Girls weren't supposed to ask boys if they wanted to dance. They just weren't.

Across the dance floor, Lan was thinking much the same thing about Ellison. He'd been tagging at Suza's heels all night, not that she'd paid him any attention, and she wished that just once he would look her way. She wasn't the most subtle when it came to facial expressions, she knew, and there was no way he could mistake her want to dance with him as anything else. After the Pokémon Shuffle she'd danced a few slow songs with Lysander and one with Conrad, but after that Lysander had wandered off to talk with some of his other friends and Conrad had been commandeered by Nikki. She'd stood against the wall for a while and watched the others dancing, had accepted costume comments from Ginny with a red face, and had then been asked by the boy in the Scyther costume to dance. Still, the night didn't seem quite finished yet.

The loudspeakers squeaked on momentarily to announce the last dance, and Lan felt her impatience snap. She made her way carefully around the dance floor to where Suza and Ellison were standing, her throat tightening the whole way. When she finally got there Suza turned to her with a sneer, "What do you want?"

Lan gave her the politest smile she could before ignoring her utterly and turning to Ellison, "I was wondering if you would like to dance?"

Ellison stared at her, and she knew exactly what was going through his head. If Suza wasn't there he would say something about dancing being a waste of time, but because she was present saying that would eliminate any chance he would have of dancing with her.

She hoped that this would make him say yes, but he simultaneously disappointed and insulted her by turning to Suza and saying, "I would much rather dance with you, Suza."

For a moment it appeared that she hadn't heard him, but then she made a shooing motion with her hand and distractedly replied, "Well I'd rather dance with Lysander. Excuse me."

Suza walked away, leaving the two of them standing there and feeling unwanted. She'd only made it halfway to Lysander, however, when Erica spotted her from the dance floor and took her hands from Jericho's shoulders.

Jericho tightened his grip on her waist momentarily before correcting himself and letting go, "What's wrong?"

"Would you mind dancing with Lan for this one?"

He didn't bother pointing out that it was the last dance and, therefore, the most important one of the night, "No, not at all."

"Good. Lysander!" She strode across the dance floor, her long legs outpacing Suza's shorter ones effortlessly. Jericho watched her go before turning and walking to Lan.

By the time Suza had wriggled through the crowd of bulky Pokémon costumes, Lysander was gone. Determination the find him dissolved into disappointed annoyance as she saw that he'd already been taken by someone else. Due mostly to the fact that her mental image of Erica was extremely unrealistic and unkind, she failed to recognize that her former roommate was the one Lysander was dancing with. She resolved to dance with Ellison after all, so the night wouldn't be a total waste, but looked over to where he'd been standing just in time to see him leave the dance hall and Lan be escorted onto the floor by Jericho.

"What a horrible night!" She stomped her foot and headed out the door.

While the others were switching dance partners and ending the night with partners they didn't necessarily want, Conrad and Nikki had remained together ever since the Pokémon Shuffle. It had originally been Conrad's intention to dance one or two songs and then join the boasting trainers at the far side of the room, but Nikki clearly had other ideas and it was her plan that won out in the end.

He felt Nikki's forehead brush beneath his chin and rested his head against it without much thought, but then realized what he was doing and removed it again. She looked up at him with a small frown playing at her lips, "Are you alright?"

"I'm…" Before he knew it, he was spitting out the half-lie that he'd promised himself he wouldn't use, "I'm kind of seeing someone already. Back in Cerulean."

Instead of pulling away from him, as he'd expected, Nikki simply said, "Oh," and went back to dancing as before.

Conrad frowned and held her away from him at arms length, "That doesn't bother you?"

"Why should it? It's not like we're kissing or anything. We're just dancing."

He thought this over, shrugged, and resumed dancing, and Nikki smiled while replacing her head against his chest.

"Besides," she thought to herself, "I don't believe you."

*

Once the last dance was done the rest of the students left the building, most to either go back to their rooms to prepare for the next morning or to attend the White Pod's after-party. Lysander and Jericho were both heading to their respective rooms, while Lan and Conrad were ushered to the party by Ginny and Nikki, respectively. Erica made a stop at the buffet table to gather as many no-sugar treats as she could before tying the train of her dress around her waist and carrying the platter out to the river. On her way up she passed Roselyn, who was strolling back towards the gym area with the boy she'd been dancing with for most of the night. Roselyn lifted her chin slightly as they passed, making sure to tuck the boy's arm more firmly around her waist.

Gyrados was the last Pokémon in the river, and it looked happy to see her coming. Then it saw the goodie platter and started thrashing its tail and roaring with delight.

Erica grinned and stopped out of reach, "Now listen," it immediately went quiet, "I don't want to wreck this dress, so I'm going to set this down close to you, and you're going to wait until I'm back here before eating it, alright?"

Gyrados nodded with impatience, but did as it was told and even waited until she nodded at it to dive at the platter and devour the treats with gusto. If it knew that the treats had no sugar in them, it didn't give any indication of it.

As it ate, Erica looked it over with satisfaction. It had lost about a third of its body weight since she'd begun training it, and even though it still had a long way to go, at this rate it wouldn't just be healthy by the end of the school year; it would be fit. Once it was finished, Erica summoned her Pokémon back into its ball and picked up the platter to take back to the dance hall. She was almost there when she heard low voices talking to one another around the back of the hall, and paused. Upon listening closer, she found that they weren't talking; they were arguing.

Deciding that the catering staff could wait a few more minutes for a single platter, she snuck around the side of the building. She wasn't quite sure why she didn't just walk, but something about the intensity of the voices was making her cautious. She was all the way around the back when she realized the voices were actually coming from up the hill, slightly inside the tree line. Cursing her obsessive-compulsive curiosity, she climbed the hill and snuck behind a nearby tree.

"I told you," the iciness of the voice made Erica immediately recognize it as Roselyn's, "I'm not that kind of a girl. You seem to have mistaken me for someone else."

"Well you're the one who's been cuddling up to me all night while we were dancing, what was I supposed to think?"

"Don't you know anything about keeping up appearances?"

"Apparently not," he was decidedly angry, "but I do know you've been sending me signals ever since we started dancing."

"I have not."

"You have!" It was more of a snarl now, "What do you call pulling my arm around your waist? Was that keeping up appearances as well?"

"Actually, yes. Sorry if you don't like it, but that's how the world-"

A sharp slap cut off her sentence prematurely, and Erica heard scuffling as the boy snapped, "It may be how your world works, but the rest of us like to think that if someone's showing us affection it actually _means _something."

"Leave me alone!" There was an actual note of panic in Roselyn's voice now.

This was enough for Erica. Much as she disliked Roselyn, she wasn't going to walk away from a situation like this and leave the girl to her fate. She stepped out around the tree, took four quick strides to where the boy was gripping Roselyn by the upper arms, and brought the dessert platter down on his head. It was only a plastic platter and wobbled after impact, but hit hard enough to stun him and cause him to stumble away a few feet. His heel caught one of the many tree roots and he landed in his back, anger all over his face.

"Now look," Erica glared him down, "I agree with you that Roselyn's a heartless, emotionless human being who bases everything on what's outside and looks down on those who don't, and hey, I don't like her either," she shook her head, "but in _anyone's_ world, what you're doing is wrong."

She watched the vein in his temple throb twice, and then twice more, before he ground out, "I'm sorry," got to his feet, and stormed away.

Erica watched him go, a hand on her hip, and was about to walk back to the dance hall when Roselyn cleared her throat. She was clearly expecting Erica to face her, but all Erica gave her was a slight turn of the head. If she was planning on regaining her cold exterior now that the boy was gone, she could think again.

At least, that was Erica's line of thinking until she heard footsteps and Roselyn hugged her from behind. She stiffened, unsure how to react, until Roselyn's wet cheek touched her back and she realized the other girl was crying.

"Thank you."

It was little more than a whisper, but her voice still wobbled. With a sigh Erica turned and put an arm around Roselyn's shoulders, giving her a supportive yet distanced squeeze, "It's alright. He's gone."

"Nobody's ever done that to me before." It was clear that Roselyn was struggling to get her composure back.

"Well, you probably shouldn't act that way around them when you're by yourself," Erica suggested bluntly. "Speaking of which, don't you have a party to go to?"

"Yes," it was a whimper, but immediately after it Roselyn took a deep breath in and tossed her rumpled hair back from her face, "but I can't go there looking like this." The words almost came out normally, "Will you stay here with me for a while?"

Erica looked like she'd like nothing less, but before she could say anything Roselyn added a genuine, "Please? In case he comes back?"

This was greeted with a resigned sigh, and Erica stepped out of Roselyn's arms to sit on the hill, "Alright, I'll stay."

Roselyn started to wrinkle her nose at the thought of sitting on the damp grass, but thought better of it and sat down as well. They sat in silence for a few seconds, before Roselyn gave an annoyed click of the tongue and shook her head with a small smile, "I suppose you _could_ have gone stargazing, after all."

Erica raised an eyebrow at her, but then looked up. Most of the clouds had cleared out of the sky, leaving a perfect view of the thousands of stars overhead. With a shrug she leaned back onto the grass and folded her arms behind her head, "I'll probably just stay here for a while then. You can leave when you feel better."

Roselyn glanced towards the building where the White Pod and their guests were gathering, down at her rescuer, back at the building, and then gently lowered herself to the ground as well, "I think I'll stay out here with you."

Erica snorted, "Why? You don't like me."

There were a few seconds of silence before Roselyn murmured, "Things change."

***********************************************************************************************************************************************


	15. Chapter 15

_I've only now discovered that I've been spelling Gyarados wrong for the past chapters it's been in. Unfortunately, I can't seem to get the website to correct it for me. It's spelled correctly from here on._

Chapter Fifteen

Long before she was ready to get up, Lan heard pounding at her door. She knew it should have occurred to her that the others would want her there to watch them battle; she just hadn't thought that it would start so early in the morning. It took her two minutes to nudge Vulpix out of her way, roll out of bed and trudge to the door, during which time she hoped whoever was knocking would simply get tired of waiting and go away. She'd stayed at the White Pod's party far longer than she should have, playing cards and finding herself climbing the ladder once again. Erica hadn't showed up, which was no surprise, but she didn't think that Roselyn put an appearance in either and that worried her. It was, after all, Roselyn who planned the party.

"Lan, we know you're in there! Open the door!"

So there was more than one of them. That would explain why they weren't leaving. She sighed and opened the door a crack, her eyes squinting into the blaring light of the hallway. The sun wasn't even up yet.

"Why?" was all she asked.

"We have to make a schedule," Conrad explained, "so we know who's battling when. That way we can all be at each other's matches."

"I'm not battling, though."

Conrad looked slightly put out, "Well, yes, but we kind of thought," Erica jabbed him in the ribs, "_I_ kind of thought that you'd still want to be there."

Lan sighed, "Just let me get dressed."

She closed the door and went to her drawers, pulling out clothing while Vulpix fixed her with an accusing expression on its face.

"We're not going in the tournament," she told it firmly. "Why would I take you into something like that when you just ripped my socks apart yesterday? No."

For once it looked chastised, and put its tail over its muzzle in embarrassment. Once she was dressed, Lan patted her shoulder and Zubat flew over to perch on it. She waved a hand for Vulpix to follow, but instead of pushing past her out the door as it usually did, it trotted over to her leg and puts its front paws on her. Somewhat suspiciously, Lan picked it up, but for once it didn't seem to have an ulterior motive.

"Alright," Conrad stated once Lan had closed her door, "with any luck, none of us will be battling at the same time. Let's go."

*

Battles were taking place all across the campus, but thankfully the layout for battles made sense. There were four battling arenas for the level two competition, and two for both the level one and the level three competition. Saturday would be completely devoted to narrowing the field, and the three final matches would take place on Sunday in the main battle arena.

Unfortunately, all of the battlers had a match to get to right off the bat. Lan hesitated, not sure who to cheer for, until Conrad played his ace and commented, "Well, it looks like I'll be against Suza this morning."

He might as well have told Lan that he was handing out free candy. The others just smiled and shook their heads as they turned for their own matchups, and Erica commented that she wanted a play-by-play the next time they met.

Lan took her place in the stands, looking for but failing to find anyone else she knew. She hadn't expected so many people to want to get up this early, or stay up if and when they saw that they weren't expected to duel for another hour or two, but apparently everyone was keen to scope out the competition and didn't want to miss a thing.

"Hey."

She looked up at the boy who'd dressed as the Scyther the previous night, feeling guilty that she couldn't recall his name. He sat down beside her and gestured at the arena, "When's your first match?"

"Er…" she was distracted by the sudden appearance of Ellison on the bleacher stairs, and he was walking up them towards her. She refocused on the Scyther student and tried not to sound like an idiot, "I'm actually not doing any battling today."

"What? But you're the one who owns the Vulpix that fought in the three-on-three a while ago, aren't you?" He pointed at her Vulpix, clearly incredulous, "Why wouldn't you battle, even in the solo Pokémon tournament? You'd probably clean up!"

Vulpix wriggled on her lap, silently letting her know that it agreed, but she shook her head, "It's not that I don't think my Pokémon would do well. I just don't think I have the confidence to do it. Maybe that confidence will come when I get a water Pokémon, but I'm not going to leave my Pokémon stranded while I have a panic attack."

"Oh, I guess that's a smart idea. Hey, guys!" He waved to someone who Lan couldn't see and excused himself, and she had the distinct feeling that he'd been waving at no one. Vulpix snorted, clearly thinking the same thing.

"You're not battling today?"

Lan sighed, turned, and came face to face with Ellison. Her cheeks turned a bright pink and she started fiddling with Vulpix's tail, "No, no I'm not. Are you?"

He frowned, "No."

"I think battling is overrated," Lan supplied conversationally. "There are plenty of other things you can do with your Pokémon besides making them fight one another."

"I'd battle if I could. My Pokémon are pathetic, though."

Lan, her social graces made somewhat careless by the early morning, rolled her eyes and turned back to the arena with a muttered, "Well excuse me."

Vulpix turned its nose up at him, but Zubat plucked up its considerably miniscule mass and hopped from Lan's shoulder to Ellison's, taking a deep breath before latching its tiny teeth onto his hat. It was such a touching gesture that Lan didn't have the heart to tell Zubat Ellison couldn't feel anything. Ellison reached up and gripped the bat around the middle, tugging it loose with a frown larger than before. This was a mistake, as the bat immediately corrected its mistake and sank its teeth into the flesh between his thumb and forefinger.

"Ow!" Ellison jumped up and released Zubat, and it fluttered back to Lan's shoulder with a defiant squeak. Vulpix, clearly impressed with its pluck, put its paws on Lan's chest and nuzzled the bat. Ellison glared at Lan, "Control your Pokémon!"

"You hypocrite!" Lan stood as well, holding Vulpix in her arms, "_You_ don't control _your_ Pokémon, you just keep them inside their Pokèballs for most of the day! And stop treating me like a blabbering idiot! The emotionless tough-guy look doesn't impress anyone!" Except me, she added silently.

Ellison went silent, but then commented, "Suza will defeat Conrad effortlessly."

Lan snorted, "Oh, of course, because she has such a wonderful track record."

Vulpix broke the awkward silence by wriggling in Lan's arms, and when she looked down it pointed with its nose at the snack booth, opened early and still with a short line. Lan flounced away from Ellison with as much exaggeration as she dared, and shortly after she bought two pretzels Conrad and Suza walked into the arena and waited for the referee to start the match. Lan sat down beside Ellison once more, breaking off a small piece of a pretzel and giving it to Zubat before giving the rest to Vulpix.

"Can't find your own seat, can you?" Ellison growled.

"I. Was here. First," she declared, chomping down on her own pretzel.

"Ladies and gentlemen, good morning and welcome to the first day of the Tournament Weekend!" The referee was extremely enthusiastic for so early in the morning, and Lan shrewdly spotted the energy drink tucked into the side of his announcer's booth, "The first matchup of the day is Conrad vs. Suza, and it promises to be an interesting match indeed. Both trainers are allowed to use one Pokémon each, and only one Pokémon." He paused briefly, glancing between the two, before continuing, "Both trainers have selected their Pokémon. Let the match… begin!"

They threw their Pokèballs at the same time, each one determined to be the winner. Suza was using her Machop, once again, but Conrad was changing things up and called out his Blastoise. He was pushing it considering Blastoise was a recent arrival, but putting out Lickitung, a normal type against a fighting type, would be a huge mistake. Blastoise scanned the audience as soon as it was out of its ball, but failing to find Lysander it turned to Conrad and tilted its head.

"Alright, Blastoise, let's take that Machop down!"

Blastoise hesitated, taking another look around. While it did so Suza commanded, "Machop, use your karate chop!"

The fighting Pokémon ran across the arena and delivered a chop to Blastoise's back, but it didn't even dent the shell. Blastoise turned around and, without waiting for an instruction from Conrad, planted a foot against the much smaller Pokémon's face and shoved it backwards a good ten feet.

"Way to go, Blastoise!" Conrad couldn't help but act as though it had all been planned out that way, "Now use hydro pump!"

Blastoise resumed looking for Lysander, wandering from side to side in the arena and standing on tiptoe to get a better view of the audience. Audience members began snickering, and Conrad was barely containing himself from hopping up and down on the spot. It was lucky for him that the tournament was being run based on standard rules, and a student couldn't be defeated due to lack of Pokémon obedience.

Suza clapped and gave her Machop a wink, "It's not paying any attention, Machop! Focus your energy and then use a seismic toss!"

"Ah!" Conrad abandoned decorum and waved his arms at Blastoise, "Pay attention, you dumb turtle! You're going to get attacked!"

Machop focussed, its body beginning to glow. The air around it started humming and crackling with energy, and then all of the energy and glow from its body solidified into its eyes and it raced at Blastoise. Much to the crowd's surprise and excitement, it gripped Blastoise's shell and raised the water Pokémon over its head. While the Blastoise glanced down at it curiously, Machop braced itself and leapt into the air. Blastoise gave a happy "stoise!" and used the opportunity to get an overhead view of the crowd, but then Machop began to spin it around. Soon Blastoise was a blur, and right when it appeared it couldn't go any faster Machop hurled it at the stadium floor with all of its focussed strength.

The crowd gave a collective gasp as a large crater appeared in the floor around Blastoise's impact site, and Machop leapt clear with a backwards aerial somersault. One this was certain about Suza; she'd definitely found a way to get Machop back in shape.

"Oh, an incredible attack from Machop!" The announcer latently announced, and the students couldn't help but think that the announcer from their own ranks was better at it, "Is Blastoise down and out?"

"Come on! It was one hit!" Conrad shouted, leaning on the railing of his trainer's box, "Get up!"

"Don't give it that chance, Machop!" Suza clapped her hands together with a bounce, clearly delighted that she was beating Conrad, "Focus your energy again and crack that shell with a mega punch!"

The crowd held its breath as Machop obeyed without hesitation and Blastoise continued to lie on the ground, pulled into its shell. With a triumphant shout Machop rushed at its opponent, fist raised to deliver the final blow.

Conrad banged his fists on the railing, "This is your last chance, Blastoise! Hydro pump!"

Its cannons remained locked inside its shell, and the crowd was on its feet as Machop closed the distance and swung its fist. Lan was standing on her bleacher seat to see over the head of the boy in front of her, and she cringed at what could only be the final blow. It was a good thing she kept one eye on the battle, however, because she along with the rest of the audience got a surprise.

With all of the power its size boasted, Blastoise's head shot from inside its shell and delivered a skull bash that knocked Machop's arm aside and connected solidly with its body, sending the fighting Pokémon rolling across the arena.

Conrad smirked, expecting an immature comment from Suza, but none came. She leaned on her railing, "Machop! Get up, I know you can keep going! Blastoise isn't even paying attention to the fight; it doesn't deserve to win, but you do! Let's go!"

Her words had the effect of a potion. Machop straightened up, rolled its shoulders, and went into a defensive stance while waiting for another command. Blastoise, meanwhile, was struggling to get to its feet, and it was still looking into the audience.

"Blastoise!" Conrad tried his best to keep control, though he wanted nothing more than to find Lysander and smack him senseless for undermining his authority, "Use hydro pump!"

There was general laughter from the audience, and one boy was brave enough to shout, "Is that the only move it knows?"

"Yeah, it's not working very well!"

Conrad pulled his hat down over his eyes, and Lan got the impression that he was about to cry. It was absurd, Conrad wasn't someone to break down and cry in public, and yet…

"Try the mega punch again, Machop! It can't use a surprise move again!"

This time Machop's punch connected, and Blastoise staggered backwards as the audience cheered. Behind her, Lan could hear students already planning what Pokémon they were going to use against Suza's Machop, as it was clearly going to be the winner of this fight.

Conrad still had his head bowed, but this didn't stop Suza from issuing more commands, "Keep up the attacks, Machop! Blastoise has a high defence, but it'll tire out soon!"

Blastoise continued to take hits, and the jeers from the audience grew in frequency and pettiness. Lan kept expecting Conrad to snap back, but he didn't, and that worried her. If he was letting the taunts get to him, there was no way he would win this battle. Worse, it could damage his confidence in the long run, and as much as she was irritated by his arrogance it was a part of who he was.

The battle continued on, but now it was more of a workout for Machop, with Blastoise as the punching bag. The turtle Pokémon made the occasional attempt to strike back, but it wasn't receiving any instruction and Machop was too fast for half of its moves to hit.

By now, the crowd's enthusiasm was beginning to die out. It didn't seem right to be watching Blastoise be beaten into submission, but unless it fainted or Conrad conceded defeat the referee wouldn't interfere.

Suza, finally feeling some of the guilt from the crowd pass on to her, snapped, "Oh, just give up, Conrad! You think I like beating up Lysander's favourite Pokémon?!"

Conrad made no sign of hearing her, but Blastoise immediately turned in her direction and pricked up its ears. Machop stopped and looked at her as well. Suza blinked, but then focussed on Blastoise and pantomimed fainting. Blastoise tilted its head as it watched, before wobbling on its feet and toppling onto its stomach.

With completely inappropriate enthusiasm, the announcer exclaimed, "It looks like Blastoise has finally gone down after a long fight! Victory goes to Suza Bishop and Machop!"

Ellison turned to Lan with a know-it-all smirk, "I told you so."

"Shut up, your Pokémon can't even go out in public."

Lan hopped down from her bleacher seat and trotted down the steps, but by the time she'd reached the bottom Blastoise had been recalled to its Pokèball and Conrad was gone. The crowd was milling around, not sure how it should respond to the rather unsatisfactory end of the battle, but then the announcer declared the next match would start in ten minutes and the energy returned. There was nothing like a new battle to forget the old one.

*

It was to the third-level stadium Conrad went, where Erica was in the middle of her first battle of the day. Compared to what this stadium looked like, the one he'd just come from was pristine. Chunks of arena were missing, several fires were raging, and still the fight went on. Erica's Charizard was breathing heavily, and her opponent's Electabuzz looked fresh. Even as he moved quickly to a seat, Conrad saw several blows and bites were exchanged. As a final uppercut connected with Charizard's jaw, the fire Pokémon let out a blast of flame from its mouth and fell backwards, crashing heavily to the floor.

"Holy! Erica's Charizard is finally taken down!" The announcer motioned to Erica, "With two Pokémon remaining, however, she still retains a definitive edge in this battle! Which Pokémon will she choose next?"

It wasn't much of a choice, and Conrad wasn't surprised when she called out her Ivysaur. Ivysaur braced itself and narrowed its eyes, waiting for either an attack from Electabuzz or a command from Erica.

"Electabuzz, thunder wave!"

"Ivysaur, sleep powder!"

The moves connected at the same time. Ivysaur immediately went rigid, but Electabuzz curled up on the floor and a sleep bubble came from its nose.

The rival trainer clapped his hands loudly, "Electabuzz! Wake up, you've still got the advantage!"

"Not really." Erica held out Ivysaur's Pokèball, "Ivysaur, return. Let's finish up, Gyarados!"

Rather than land on Electabuzz, as was its previous signature move, Gyarados came out normally. It was no longer fat enough to guarantee a one-hit knockout.

"Before it wakes up, Gyarados! Use bite!"

There was an enthusiastic cheer from the crowd that quickly turned into a horrified gasp as Gyarados swallowed.

"Spit that out _right_ now!" Erica snapped.

Gyarados had the good grace to look embarrassed at its impulsive behaviour, and hacked the now-slimy Electabuzz back onto the arena floor. Not surprisingly, the electric Pokémon had fainted.

"This match is over! Victory to Erica and her voracious Gyarados!" The announcer waved his flag in Erica's direction, but quickly snatched it back as Gyarados regarded it hungrily, "This isn't edible! Go on, shoo!"

When Erica exited the building, Conrad was waiting for her. She took one look at him, walked over and pointed a finger at his belt, "You used Blastoise, didn't you?"

"I need to talk to you."

She nodded, and they walked in silence until they were in a strictly academic section of the school. Obviously Conrad wanted no one to overhear him, and as soon as he spoke it became clear why, "I want to try and return Blastoise for another Pokémon."

"You can't."

"No, I know it says it's against the rules, but I want to try. It wouldn't listen to me, Erica." Conrad looked genuinely upset, "The whole battle, it was looking for Lysander. Even when Machop was beating the snot out of it, all it wanted to do was comb the stands looking for him. It wouldn't listen to me!"

She sat down on the desk across from him, "I can only tell you what you already know, Conrad. You have to find a way. We have to rehabilitate…"

"No! I'm sick of hearing that! I've been given a Pokémon that decided the first day I had it that it would rather belong to someone else! At least Lickitung has the same personality as I do!" Conrad held up his first Pokémon's ball, "I should have used it in the battle."

"Normal versus fighting? That would have been a disaster."

"Yeah? Well at least it would have been a disaster in which my Pokémon paid attention to me. You weren't there; I had dozens of students laughing at me while Blastoise trotted around like a toddler!"

"You need to relax." Erica stood up and put her hands on his shoulders, "How long have you owned Blastoise?"

"…less than a day," he admitted reluctantly, "but it only wants…!"

"It doesn't matter." Erica released his shoulders, "Here's what I think. You're upset because Lysander co-opted Blastoise's affection the second time you let it out of its ball, and being beaten by Suza is compounding that. If it's any consolation," she smiled, "I don't think Lysander should have done what he did. The first few days are the most critical time between trainer and Pokémon, and you really don't need anyone stepping in and making things worse. Do you like Sandslash?"

The question caught him completely off-guard, "What?"

"You heard me."

"I suppose, but it doesn't know any moves. As far as battling goes, it's…" he paused, a tiny glint appearing in his eyes, "Are you suggesting what I think you are?"

"Well, what do you think I'm suggesting?"

"All Sandslash really needs is a bunch of TMs and lots of encouragement. If it got those, it would definitely be a formidable Pokémon." Conrad puzzled it out, "So if I start paying attention to Sandslash every time it's out of its Pokèball, it'll start to like me, and if I have Blastoise out at the same time, Lysander won't be paying attention to his own Pokémon. I can get TMs as I go, the basic ground moves aren't that expensive…" he trailed off, dejected. "It wouldn't work though. We can't trade PokeProjects."

Erica rolled her eyes, "Yes, because we're going to be in school forever. What a tragic roadblock to an otherwise perfect plan."

Conrad waivered, "Blastoise is so strong, though."

"Is it the only one in the world?"

"No." Conrad straightened up, "No, it's not. Alright, so this Blastoise and I aren't meant to be, but somewhere out there at this moment is a turtle Pokémon that I'll match like bread and butter."

"I have a suggestion. Don't be the one to suggest the trade." His annoyed face forced her to explain further, "You have the Blastoise, remember? If Lysander sees that you really like his Sandslash, he'll be willing to swap. If you propose the trade, though, he might think you're only out to get a Pokémon that will listen."

"Well, I am."

"You're an idiot and I have a PokeCenter to visit," and just like that, the conversation was over.

*

Unable to find any of the others and in need of some fresh air, Lan took her Pokémon and went outside. She hesitated when it came time to let Meowth out of its Pokèball, but concluded that she couldn't help it unless she was in contact with it. She just hoped that contact didn't involve its claws.

Meowth yowled and leapt at her the first chance it got, and Vulpix didn't attempt to stop it. Zubat, however, opened its mouth and fired off a squeak that reminded Lan of a dog whistle. Meowth immediately fell face-first into the ground, and when it got up it walked around like it was drunk. Proud of its continuing courage, Zubat puffed up its chest and rubbed Lan's ear affectionately with its head.

Lan watched the crowds of students running from arena to arena and sighed. Somewhere her friends were battling, and she hoped they were doing well. She guessed that Conrad would be watching either Lysander or Erica, and Ellison would most likely be following Suza around with devotion.

Suddenly Lan's morning caught up with her and she put her head on her knees, "What was I doing, talking to Ellison like that? Now he'll _never_ like me."

She decided resolutely that she would remain outside and away from other people for the rest of the day, but by lunchtime she was hungry and had to head to the cafeteria. Meowth was replaced in its Pokèball, thoroughly disoriented from half a dozen confuse rays from Zubat, but Lan's other two Pokémon stayed out. Usually students were only allowed to have one Pokémon released at a time, but Zubat was more of an accessory and none of the teachers minded.

"Hey, Lan!" Lysander spotted her as soon as she stepped through the doors and waved her over to the table he was at, "Where have you been all morning? Did you see any good fights?"

"Just the one," Lan sighed. "Conrad used Blastoise."

"And?"

"He lost."

Lysander stared at her, "How did he lose? Blastoise is big enough to hold its ground even against some grass and electric types. What did Suza fight with?"

"A Machop."

"He lost against _Machop_?!" Lysander was both incredulous and annoyed, "Does he not know anything about battling?"

"That's not fair. Blastoise wasn't paying him any attention, it kept looking for you the whole time." Lan was hoping this would guilt Lysander, but it seemed to have the opposite effect. Lysander's face broke into a massive grin and he started twirling his drink straw back and forth. Lan added, "He's going to have a really tough time training Blastoise if all it does is ignore him in favour of you."

"Maybe it's just a bad match." Lysander didn't seem to pity Conrad at all, "Conrad always complains about the Pokémon he gets. He shouldn't have battled a Pokémon he got yesterday, and expecting it to listen to him so soon after getting it was a rookie mistake."

"I'm just saying that Conrad isn't very outgoing with his affections, and Blastoise needs to learn how Conrad expresses them. It can't really do that if you're constantly hugging it."

Lysander was starting to get annoyed, "So I'm the villain because I'm a nice person?"

"No," Lan tried to switch tactics, "but if Conrad and Blastoise can't learn to work together by the end of the year, Conrad will fail and Blastoise will be sent back into that big crate of Pokèballs. It might stay there for years, I don't know."

From the suddenly stricken look on Lysander's face, it was clear he hadn't thought of that. He tapped his finger off of his chin several times, deep in thought, before asking, "Why don't Conrad and I have a talk? I can't stop being who I am, and I'm not going to start shunning my favourite Pokémon, but maybe we can work something out."

Relief was all over Lan's face, and she decided it was high time to change topics, "So how are your battles going so far?"

"I'm done for today." Lysander shrugged, "The finals are tomorrow, and there weren't that many people in the level one pool."

"You mean you're in the finals?!" Lan clapped, "Congratulations! Do you know who you're against?"

"No, but if we go to the scoreboard we can find out." Lysander went to get up, but paused, "You haven't even had anything to eat. You get some food and I'll check the board."

While she was waiting in line for food Lan spotted Erica and Conrad enter the cafeteria. They didn't see her and took a table further down the room, so when she'd received her food she joined them and hoped Lysander would spot the new location.

"Celebrate and be merry," Conrad smirked at her as she sat down, "Erica's in the finals."

Lan grinned, "That's great! So is Lysander."

To her surprise, Conrad didn't wince or give any other notice that he was angry at the other boy for ruining his chance to bond with Blastoise. Instead he nodded, "It's going to be a big day tomorrow. With the threes and ones done though, it means we can all watch the same matches this afternoon. I'll be back, I'm getting a drink."

Once he was gone Lan remarked, "He's taking it very well."

"He is," Erica agreed.

Lan waited for her friend to continue, but when silence was all that met her ears she frowned, "Alright, what do you two have planned?"

"Planned?" Erica gave Lan her best bemused look, "Why do we always have to have plans? Can't I just agree with you sometimes?"

Lysander was back before Lan could think of how to respond, "Well, you'll never believe who I'm facing tomorrow."

"Who?" As soon as they asked, both girls saw the look on his face and glared at him. It was Erica who voiced, "You've got to be kidding me. _Suza_ made the finals?"

"I guess she found a really good way to help Machop lose weight," Lysander shrugged and sat down.

Erica muttered, "I'll bet she used a toothbrush."

"What would that…? Erica!"

Her smirk was impish, "I'm just thinking out loud."

*

The last match of the day was between Jericho and Roselyn. Nikki had beaten a girl from the Yellow Pod in the previous match and secured her place in the finals the next day, and now she was sitting beside Conrad with a bag of popcorn in one hand and his hand in the other. It was unlikely that Conrad didn't notice, which could only mean that he didn't mind. This new development had Lan staring, and she only stopped when Erica rapped her knuckles off of her head.

"Both competitors have selected their first Pokémon. Let the final match of the day… begin!"

If the enthusiasm of the crowd was the only indication to go by, it might as well have been the first match of the day. Jericho started with his Onyx, and Roselyn's first Pokémon was a Nidoking. The crowd rippled with surprise, and Lan smiled. One of the pleasant aspects of having a school tournament was that there really was no telling which person had what Pokémon. Cutesy girl Suza owned a Machop, and aloof boy Ellison owned a Clefairy.

"Nidoking, use a submission attack!"

"Onyx, counter with wrap!"

As the two ground titans battled in the arena, Lan noticed Suza and Ellison making their way through the stands to where she and the others were sitting. At this point in time, there was no point in trying to look away and hope she didn't see them. Suza had most likely spotted them minutes ago, and the slow walk was all for the sake of appearance. Lan was really starting to hate appearance.

"Oh! Hello Lysander!" Suza scooted in beside him with all the excitement of a girl who hasn't seen her closest friend in weeks, "Tomorrow's going to be so strange, don't you think?"

"Uh…" Lysander was distracted by the hostile look flying from Ellison's eyes, "why?"

"We have to fight each other, silly!" She nudged his shoulder with her own and giggled, "Don't you think that's strange?"

"Not really, it just means we did the best in our pool." Lysander was clearly trying to pay attention to the match, but Suza wasn't letting him go that easily.

"It's too bad you weren't there to see the first match of the day. Machop did _so_ well!" She fluttered her lashes, "I mean, I know that Blastoise is your favourite Pokémon, but Conrad sure doesn't have his trained very well." Conrad lean backwards and glared at her, and she giggled, "Oh Conrad, I didn't see you there."

"Go giggle your noxious lies somewhere else, Suza," he snapped.

Ellison's disapproving glare immediately went from Lysander to Conrad, "You're the sorest loser I've ever seen."

Conrad was on his feet instantly, "At least I made the attempt. You can talk as tough as you want when you didn't even enter the tournament."

"There's nothing to be proud of when you throw your Pokémon into a situation they're not ready for."

Nikki tugged on Conrad's arm, "Enough. Just sit down and watch the match. Please?"

Conrad was on the verge of doing so when Ellison murmured something that Lan didn't quite catch, but even though he was farther away from Ellison than she was, Conrad did. He was pushing past her, Erica, and Lysander instantly, leaving Nikki to make and miss a grab at his coat. Ellison took a rushed step backwards before thinking better of it and standing his ground, but that one step allowed Conrad to muscle past Suza and stand nose-to-nose with him.

"I don't want to hear one more word out of your mouth about either how I act or my trainer abilities unless you're prepared to back it up with a Pokémon battle," he seethed, "because as I see it, you're a hypocritical jerk who gets off on making other people feel bad and can't even battle with a Pokémon he's had for two months. So back off."

Ellison's mouth formed into a long line, completely emotionless, but before he could think of a comeback the announcer exclaimed, "A fantastic counter by Nidoking! It looks like Onyx is out for the count!"

Everyone else's eyes snapped back to the arena, leaving Conrad and Ellison in a silent stare-down. Jericho summoned Onyx back into its Pokèball and thought carefully before throwing his final Pokèball into the field.

"What's this? Jericho has selected Parasect as his next Pokémon!"

"Hey!" Lan stood up to get a better look at Parasect, "I didn't know Paras evolved!"

Down on the field, Nidoking began to circle Parasect slowly. It was already panting heavily from its bout with Onyx, and wasn't entirely sure what this new Pokémon's strategy would be.

"Parasect! Finish up fast with a giga drain!"

"Nidoking, dodge and use quick attack!"

Nidoking successfully dodged, but as it was rushing forward to tackle Jericho shouted, "Parasect, use slash!"

The quick attack connected, but as Nidoking was tackling its mushroom Parasect swept both of its claws upwards and delivered a critical blow. Nidoking teetered backwards for a few steps before crashing to the ground unconscious.

The announcer shouted, "This battle is even once again. Let's see what Pokémon Roselyn selects as her final choice!"

Roselyn's eyes narrowed as she regarded Parasect, but it was obvious that she already had a Pokémon in mind. She threw its ball onto the field, and there was a collectively jealous sigh from most of the girls watching as a Wigglytuff danced its way out of its Pokèball. When it saw its opponent, however, it stopped dancing and pouted.

"Parasect, poison powder!"

The order had been given almost as soon as Wigglytuff materialized, and it was so busy pouting that it didn't dodge fast enough. The hazy purple powder settled over it like a blanket, and it gave a shuddering cough.

"Wigglytuff, sing!"

Wigglytuff sucked in air to launch its attack, but a clot of the powder caught in its throat and it started coughing instead.

"Layer the attack, Parasect! Stun spore!"

"Wigglytuff, dodge it and retaliate with metronome!"

The stun spore missed, and Parasect braced itself for the metronome attack, but none came. Instead, Wigglytuff closed its eyes and started sleeping.

"Parasect, use growth while it's sleeping," Jericho considered his next option, "and when it wakes up, hit it with a giga drain."

For the next minute there wasn't much to watch, until Wigglytuff finally woke up and Parasect used its giga drain.

Roselyn frowned, "We can't just stand in one spot, Wigglytuff. Use your double-slap."

"Parasect, counter with slash!"

Wigglytuff danced around Parasect's slash with ease, despite being poisoned, and delivered a double-slap that reverberated around the arena. It leapt away as Parasect slashed at it again, and waited for Roselyn's command.

"Try metronome again, Wigglytuff."

It did, and Jericho pinched the bridge of his nose as a blast of fire exploded from Wigglytuff's mouth and formed a circle around Parasect. The insect Pokémon scuttled back and forth, anxiety clearly on its face, but then the buzzer went and the referee raised Roselyn's flag, "Jericho has forfeited. Victory goes to Roselyn and her Wigglytuff!"

The entire White Section, save Ellison of course, rose to its feet with cheers and applause. Jericho summoned his panicking Parasect back into its Pokèball with a smile before nodding to Roselyn and backing off of his trainer's box. She nodded back, equally as civil, and the spectators were glad that the day ended on such a civil note. Some even commented that it was nice _some_ boys knew when to call it quits.

Lan turned to Conrad, but some time during the battle both he and Ellison had left. She only hoped that it wasn't together.

"So," Suza finally wrapped her arms around Lysander, "what should we do to celebrate being in the finals together?"

Lysander shrugged, "How about ice cream?"

"I'd love some," Lan immediately put in.

"So would I," Nikki added.

Suza glared at them both, but readjusted her face into a friendly smile when Lysander glanced down at her, "Of course! After all, you're in the finals tomorrow too, Nikki." She looked like the next words coming from her mouth were bile, but managed to get them out anyway, "You're in the finals as well, Erica. Do you want to come with us?"

"Sure," Erica smirked, "but I'll meet you there. Roselyn just made the finals as well, I think I'll invite her along."

Lan and Lysander both stared agape at her and she shrugged, "Things change."


	16. Chapter 16

_Note: Thanks to Joshjmur for spotting a pretty big mistake. Roselyn does **not** have a Kingler (yet!). I've edited it now so that it makes sense._

Chapter Sixteen

Lan had thought that the finals would go in counting order, but the principal had another idea that she had to admit was better. At the beginning of the day people would be expecting a long and multi-Pokémon battle, but as it went on they would want the matches to be over sooner. They would still be enthusiastic, of course, as everyone involved with Pokémon was always fixated on Pokémon tournaments, but they would also enthusiastically want the matches to conclude sooner. After all, some of them had a lot of homework to do.

All three of the matches were to take place in the main arena, as it was the only one large enough to hold the entire student body plus faculty. After the three matches would come the award ceremony, and the case containing the prizes was already sitting beneath the referee's podium. The crowd just hoped that the battling Pokémon didn't accidentally smash it into pieces, along with the prizes inside it.

Lan and Conrad sat in the stands alone; the rest of their friends were waiting in the trainers' preparation rooms for their respective battles to begin. Ellison was making a point of sitting directly across the arena from them, and when either of them looked his way his frown grew massive and he turned his head with a sneer.

"Pompous ass," Conrad remarked, crossing his arms and sticking his own nose in the air. Lan didn't bother pointing out the hypocrisy; it was too easy.

"Ladies and gentlemen, students and faculty of the school, welcome to the finals of the FOCUS Fall Tournament!" The announcer was really on his game today, "Yesterday saw action, drama, and incredible energy as roughly 200 Pokémon battled it out for the chance to be in this arena today. Only twelve of those Pokémon emerged victorious, and though they are about to compete for glory and titles, only six will be strong enough, and passionate enough, to claim what they seek."

Among the screaming applause, Lan murmured, "You could write this man's speeches, Conrad. Just record one of your daily conversations."

"Oh, be quiet."

"And now!" The announcer raised his arms, his fingers stretching to the roof as the crowd fell silent, "The final battle for the Evolution Stone, trainer Jordan Ross," he pointed a dramatic finger to his right, and a blue light filled the doorway from the trainer's preparation room, revealing Jordan's silhouette, "against trainer Erica Hunter," the finger swung to his left, and red light backlit Erica's silhouette. Lan had to admit, it was showy to the extreme and building her excitement even more. The announcer's finger centered on the arena, "Trainers, prepare to battle!"

Even Conrad couldn't hold back an anticipating cheer as Jordan and Erica stepped up into their trainer's boxes and were raised off the floor. Both trainers looked confident, but there was something in the way they stared each other down that made Lan think they'd interacted before. She frowned, wondering again where Erica had gone after the dance ended on Friday night.

"Both trainers are ready," the announcer raised his hand into the air, "then let this Pokémon battle… begin!"

Down in the arena, a Sandslash and an Ivysaur emerged from their Pokèballs. Both Erica and Jordan had gained some fans in their numerous battles yesterday, and Jordan's fans groaned while Erica's cheered.

"It's going to be interesting to see how these two strategise," Conrad laced his fingers in front of his mouth and leaned forward, "since they both got to see the three Pokémon that the other has yesterday."

"Also the battle strategies used yesterday." Lan regarded Jordan's Sandslash, which had been ordered to use dig, and nodded, "I'll bet Erica was using Charizard as her starter a lot, so he thought he'd use Sandslash first and start the battle with a combat advantage."

While Sandslash was burrowed under the ground, Erica commanded her Ivysaur to use petal dance. Several girls let out a collective "awa" as the Ivysaur leapt and frolicked around the arena, petals pouring from its bud like confetti. It was obvious most of them had forgotten that the same Ivysaur was somewhat of a pervert.

"Now, Sandslash, use dig!"

"Vine whip up and over, Ivysaur!"

Ivysaur pushed off of the ground with its vines as Sandslash broke through the arena floor, avoiding the attack completely. Without Erica instructing it to do so, Ivysaur wrapped its vines around Sandslash as soon as it touched down. The Sandslash struggled, but its sharp claws were bound to its sides.

"Sandslash, try a strength attack!"

"Ivysaur, loosen up those vines and use a concentrated petal dance!"

The match continued on, with the advantage definitely in Ivysaur's favour. It would only be a matter of time before Sandslash's defence fell to the plant Pokemon's attacks. It was as Sandslash finally fainted that Conrad felt a tap on his shoulder, and he looked up to see one of the guidance councillors looking down at him with a grave face. Knowing exactly what this was about, he sighed and followed the woman, glancing across the arena as he went. Sure enough, Ellison was also being escorted from the arena by another faculty member.

He'd told Lan that nothing had happened when he and Ellison left the battle yesterday afternoon, but that wasn't quite true. The two boys and stormed from the arena shoulder to shoulder, waiting to get away from authority figures before dropping their Pokebelts to the side and engaging in a fistfight. Unfortunately, they hadn't counted on the fact that not all of the faculty were at the match, and had been spotted by Coach Belle from his office window. Rather than talk to them while the matches were over, Belle had decided to wait and deprive them of viewing the finals. Perhaps the message would sink in more this way.

Conrad and Ellison were marched to Belle's office side by side, neither so much as twitching his eyes toward the other. They were both already in a precarious position for having only two Pokémon so far into the term, and academic penalties were the last thing either boy wanted to start accruing.

Upon entering Belle's office, Conrad and Ellison were left alone. They looked around at the multiple trophies and pictures, fixing their eyes anywhere except on each other, until Belle entered from an adjoining room with a large grin that was completely at odds with the situation.

"Boys!" His enthusiasm was as misplaced as his grin, "Sit! Sit, we have much to discuss."

They sat.

"Now, I find myself in quite the pickle." Belle chuckled, "Here I went and set up this self-defence training class, and the numbers have dropped quite steeply. I don't like thinking that the class was all a cheap ploy for you two to stay at the school, but I was starting to think I was right. Then," he held up his finger and shook it sagely, "then I saw the two of you flailing your arms at one another yesterday afternoon, like wet noodles might I add, and I realized that I need to take a firm hand here."

Conrad and Ellison had both winced at the less-than-flattering description of their fight, but neither one wanted to ask what Belle's "firm hand" was going to be. Sure enough, he wasn't the kind of man to keep them in suspense.

"Conscription."

That startled a "what?!" out of Conrad.

"Conscription, boy! Why, you two are bordering on manhood, and I'll bet that Suza girl could take you out. What you need is physical training!"

"You can't _teach_ fighting," Ellison pointed out, "it's against school policy."

"What makes you think I'm teaching you anything?" Belle turned his muscular nose up at them both, "You attended exactly one self-defence class before quitting. No, I have a better way for you to get into shape, and it even involves the great outdoors!"

For the first time Conrad noticed the two rakes propped against one of the walls, and sighed. As if Erica didn't have enough material to tease him with.

*

By the time Conrad was finally able to return to the arena, Erica's match was long over and Nikki's was halfway through. He slid back into his seat beside Lan, refusing to answer the question in her eyes. Unless absolutely necessary, he wouldn't be telling anyone that he now had to log ten hours of grounds keeping every week. The worst part was that the length of the punishment wasn't dependent on his behaviour; he had to do it until he graduated. That Ellison was in the same boat didn't cheer him up at all.

Roselyn's Wigglytuff had just defeated Nikki's Mankey, and all eyes were on Nikki as she decided on her second Pokémon. Her Mankey had already defeated Roselyn's Nidoking, and she'd seen firsthand that Wigglytuff's metronome attack had almost supernatural luck at selecting a random attack its opponent was weak against. Using Beedrill therefore, which was weak against four types of attacks, wouldn't be a smart idea. Which left her newest Pokémon…

"I choose you, Jolteon!"

Most of the crowd leaned forward with interest, Conrad and Lan included. Nikki's Jolteon sniffed the air, not particularly interested in battling, until it caught sight of Wigglytuff. Instantly its ears went forward, and it started loping towards the fairy Pokémon.

Lan frowned, "Is it using a tackle without her asking it to?"

Conrad shrugged, "I'm not sure."

"Wigglytuff, use your double slap!" Roselyn instructed.

Nikki didn't give Jolteon an order to dodge, but she didn't need to. As soon as Wigglytuff took a swing at it, Jolteon nimbly hopped to the side. It dodged towards and away from Wigglytuff, waiting for a command from Nikki.

"Try double slap again, Wigglytuff!"

Another easy dodge from Jolteon, and this time Nikki reached into her pocket and removed something that looked suspiciously like a pitch-whistle. While Wigglytuff continued to attempt double slaps, Nikki pulled a piece of paper from her pocket and unfolded it, giving it a quick glance before placing her fingers over the first and third holes on the whistle and blowing. Immediately Jolteon leapt behind Wigglytuff and nipped at its heels, and Wigglytuff hopped forward with an annoyed squeal.

"What's this?" The announcer leaned forward in his booth, "It looks like Jolteon is attempting to _herd_ Wigglytuff!"

Most of the crowd laughed, but Roselyn wasn't amused, "Wigglytuff, use your metronome attack!"

Half of the people watching were expecting a ground or rock attack of some sort, but instead a massive wave rose from the far corner of the arena and swept towards the two Pokémon. Wigglytuff panicked and started flailing on the spot, not sure what to do, but Jolteon reacted instantly. It leapt for Wigglytuff, grabbing it by the scruff of the neck with its teeth, and jumped into the air, bounding over the wave and landing on the other side. When they were both safely on the ground, Jolteon released Wigglytuff and retreated a few steps before sitting down and scratching its chin.

The announcer was thoroughly confused, "I don't know Nikki expects to win, if her Pokémon is going to keep saving its opponent like that."

Roselyn shook her head, hand on hip, "You should have gone with the bug-type, Nikki. Wigglytuff, use sing and follow up with a double slap."

"Jolteon, cover your ears!"

The dog Pokémon didn't listen to her, and soon the song of Wigglytuff had it nodding towards dreamland. Nikki scanned her list of commands, then adjusted her fingers and blew sharply on the whistle, sending a discordant squeal across the arena. Jolteon immediately leapt to its feet and squared itself, its eyes darting around as it growled. Wigglytuff, in the middle of racing in for a double slap, didn't have time to stop before Jolteon fixed its eyes on it. Jolteon took the double slap to the face, but then latched its teeth onto Wigglytuff's arm and grappled it to the ground. There was no herding going on now.

Nikki noticed the puddle Wigglytuff was lying in and cleared her throat, "It just stepped out of line, Jolteon. A thundershock will fix it!"

This line of reasoning appealed to Jolteon's herding instinct, and it electrocuted Wigglytuff. As Nikki had predicted, the water amplified the shock, and Wigglytuff fainted.

"Wigglytuff is unable to battle! Victory goes to Nikki and her Jolteon!"

The sudden cheering startled Jolteon, but at the sound of a whistle command from Nikki it spun around and trotted back to her side, where it sat with its head against her thigh. As the rest of the crowd cheered, Nikki turned and looked directly at Conrad, and he was extremely glad that he'd broken his usual protocol and run back to the arena. Ellison, who had stayed true to form and trudged, was only now arriving.

As Nikki and Roselyn left the arena, Conrad turned to Lan, "So why isn't Erica back here? Does she have to wait below?"

"Yes," Lan nodded sagely, "although I would assume that they still have some means of watching the others participate. Why did you have to…?"

"Oh look, there's Suza. Good lord, what is she wearing?"

This statement worked exactly as he'd hoped it would; Lan forgot all about his escorted exit and focussed on her rival's outfit. Clearly someone had neglected to tell the girl that pink and red didn't go well together, especially in multiple layers.

"The least she could have done was add purple," Ginny muttered, sitting down on the other side of Lan. "What an eyesore."

Conrad leaned around Lan and held out a hand, "I applaud you for your impeccable fashion sense."

Knowing what she knew of Ginny, Lan didn't think there was a compliment a boy could give Ginny that would flatter her more. Sure enough, Ginny beamed and shook his hand firmly. Unfortunately, many of the people sitting around them seemed to think that Suza looked adorable.

"The final match of the day is about to begin! Trainer Suza Bishop is facing off against trainer Lysander Cage."

Suza had burst from her doorway prematurely, eager to show off her outfit, and so didn't get the dramatic silhouette effect that Lysander did. She attempted to retrace her steps back into the red light, but by that time the lights had faded and she was required to walk to the trainer's platform. A pout was on her face for most of said walk.

Lysander had quite the intimidating silhouette, but as soon as he stepped into the normal lighting of the arena it was replaced by his usual happy-go-lucky expression. From the stands, Lan found herself reaching for her sketch pad. Outrageous colours aside, the contrast between Lysander and Suza made for an intriguing picture.

The referee signalled for the match to begin, and both trainers threw their balls. It was no surprise that Suza was using Machop, once again, and Lan had to wonder that Suza hadn't come across a single psychic or ground Pokémon the previous day. Talk about luck. Lysander's choice surprised everyone; Exeggcute. It was obvious that he couldn't use Sandslash, but Staryu was willing to do whatever Lysander asked of it, unlike the unruly half-carton.

"Oh Lysander, you silly boy, those eggs can't do anything but bicker!" Suza giggled before pointing, "Machop, use your low kick and play soccer!"

Machop raced the eggs, and Lysander instructed, "Exeggcute, you're not a collective, split up!"

They each hopped in a different direction, leaving Machop to plough through the middle and kick the air.

"Keep it up, Machop! They don't have legs, they can't hop away forever!"

Lysander's Exeggcute were clearing getting tired of Suza's insults, and they turned as one to glare at her. Machop used the distraction to aim a kick at the female egg and send her flying across the arena.

Lysander did some pointing of his own, aiming his finger at the center of the arena, "Form up around the Pokèball symbol, Exeggcute!"

Half of them rolled there by themselves, the other half were sent there aerially by Machop's continued kicks.

"Alright Machop! Keep it up!"

"Exeggcute, use evasion!"

For a Pokémon without feet, Exeggcute was doing a great job in avoiding Machop's attacks. Machop took a step backwards, panting, and those higher up in the stands could see that it was now standing directly in the center of the ring of Exeggcute. Suza could see it too, but before she could give Machop a command Lysander shouted, "Now, Exeggcute! Confusion!"

The eggs all leaned the equivalent of their foreheads towards Machop, and electric energy shot out in thin sparks. One from each egg went to Machop, and others went to the other Exeggcute until they were all connected.

"Machop, get out of that!" Suza had tears in the corners of her eyes that were more for show than genuine concern.

Machop staggered for the edge of the circle, but the eggs hopped as one and maintained it. Whichever direction it tripped, the six eggs kept the circle perfectly round, and finally the fighting Pokémon twirled around and dropped to the floor.

"Look at that, ladies and gentlemen! Who says that teamwork never pays off?" The announcer was just doing his job, but it was quite possibly the best thing he could have done to console the Exeggcute to fighting a single opponent. They hopped and rolled back to Lysander as Suza returned her Machop to its Pokèball.

Lysander scooped them into his arms and hugged them all, "You guys were fantastic! You took that Machop out in one hit!"

Even the pessimistic egg had nothing to counter that with; they were all smiling and congratulating one another on their victory.

"Hey Lysander!"

He looked over at Erica, who was waving him towards the victory podium. The principal was already standing there with the vice principal, who was holding a pillow with three medals on it. Lysander jogged over to join Erica and Nikki, a large grin on his face. From the look on the principal's face, it was clear he'd enjoyed the matches. It was also equally clear that he wanted the students to start working on their upcoming final projects and exams.

The three stood on their respective pedestals, where the principal hung the medals around their necks and the vice principal handed out their prizes. As the announcer presented the champions to the cheering of the crowd, Lysander looked down at his TM's number: 28.

*

"Dig," Conrad told him as soon as he asked, "TM 28 teaches your Pokémon how to dig."

They were sitting outside, enjoying what would probably be their last free Sunday for quite a while. Lan looked around at all the people who were sitting around them and had to smile, even though she wished Suza wasn't there. Despite losing to Lysander, Suza was still as interested in him as before. Perhaps now she was even _more_ interested, knowing that he had strong Pokémon he could defend her with, in the unlikely event that she needed saving.

"Oh." Lysander grinned, "You sure know a lot about Pokémon items, Conrad. Did you work in a PokeMart or something?"

"No. I've just been reading up on them since I was young. I'm not one of those guys who decides on the spur of the moment that he's going to enter the Pokémon League and then moves on after two or three defeats; I'm in it for the long run." Conrad prodded Lysander with his toe, "Well? Are you going to teach it to Sandslash or not?"

"Sure, I'm just not exactly sure how it works yet." Lysander was reading over the instructions, "I've never had to do this before, it's kind of exciting."

Lan glanced over at Erica, and saw that she was staring at Conrad expectantly. Then Lan looked back at Conrad, and saw the same gleam in his eye. So whatever was about to happen, the two of them had planned it out together.

"Say, why don't we go further out in the field? Then we can all let our Pokémon out for some fresh air." Conrad never actually looked at Ellison, but his next words were clearly meant for him, "Some of them haven't been out of their balls all weekend."

"What a great idea!" Nikki was tugging Conrad's hand towards the far field immediately, "I haven't gotten a chance to show any of you my Jolteon up close!"

Lan felt somewhat snubbed, then realized that Nikki was trying to diffuse the situation and took Lysander's hand, "Let's go, Lysander!"

The group of nine walked out to the field, eventually settling around two large trees near a large pond. At the same time Lysander released his Sandslash, Conrad released his Blastoise, and the effect was a rippled one. Lysander was caught between hugging the turtle Pokémon, which already had its arms out, and hugging Sandslash, which was in a similar position.

Conrad solved this dilemma by shouting, "Group hug! Come on, all four, in we go!"

It ended up being the two boys and Sandslash pressed rather tightly against Blastoise's body, while the others looked on with a smile. Lan sat down on the grass and released her three Pokémon, and before Meowth could cause any trouble Nikki released her three as well. Meowth's yowling scratch attack was cut short as a whistle tone went and Jolteon was suddenly herding the hissing cat towards a small hill a few dozen feet away. Vulpix, intrigued by what Jolteon was doing, joined in the herding, and Mankey threw its lot in with Meowth and was content to be chased around giving happy snorts. Beedrill and Zubat flew up to one of the tree's branches and started talking to one another, and Lan and Nikki exchanged happy grins.

Lan then looked over at Erica, and a puzzled smile crossed her face. Erica and Roselyn were both still standing, and Erica seemed exasperated over something the other girl was saying. Finally she tossed her hands into the air and sat, pulling her hair out of its elastic. Roselyn smiled and knelt behind her, removing a brush from her bag and running it through Erica's hair. There was a slight pause as the two girls released their Pokémon, then Roselyn put her hands on Erica's shoulders and readjusted her. Erica's Gyarados, along with Roselyn's Goldeen, splashed into the pond. Nidoking and Charizard settled in for a talk, while Ivysaur tried to hop high enough to draw level with their faces and Wigglytuff sat on the grass and looked up at the sky.

Jericho sat down across from Erica with a smile, adding his Pokémon to the mix. Onyx moved over to Gyarados, taking care to stay away from both the pond and Lan as it went, and Wartortle followed it. Parasect scuttled over to Ivysaur, and suddenly the two struck up a conversation far livelier than the larger Pokemon's. No one really wanted to know what they were talking about.

Conrad was showing Lysander how to use a TM properly, but Blastoise was taking some of Lysander's attention away. Eventually Conrad suggested, "Tell you what, Lysander. Why don't you let me do this, and you can hug Blastoise some more? It needs the affection."

Lysander looked between him and Sandslash, "Are you sure?"

"Positive. Oh, I almost forgot," Conrad released Lickitung, and motioned between the two. "Lickitung, Sandslash. I hope you two will be good friends."

Lysander was preoccupied with releasing Staryu and Exeggcute, but Lan saw immediately what Conrad was up to. She was about to call him on it, when she glanced between Blastoise and Sandslash. Both Pokémon looked perfectly happy in their current situation, and she sighed. Maybe this would work out, after all.

She turned to look at Suza and Ellison, the only two who had yet to release their Pokémon; she didn't think that _ever_ would.

"Suza," Nikki was trying to extend the olive branch, "why don't you let Growlithe out to play with the other dog Pokémon? I'm sure it would like that."

Suza hesitated, but then released all three of her Pokémon. Machop headed over to Lickitung and Sandslash, while Venonat continued to sit where it was. Growlithe made a dash for the woods, but Jolteon was after it in a flash and herding it back. With a small pout Suza turned to Ellison, and he got the hint. His obese Clefairy came out of its ball with a squish, and rolled over to Suza's fat Venonat, and the two started bouncing up and down together. Pikachu stood on its hind legs and sniffed the air, then tensed as Lan's Vulpix trotted up to it. Vulpix couched down, wiggling its hind end in the air, then barked playfully and dodged from side to side. Pikachu gave Ellison a questioning look, then exclaimed, "Pi!" and ran to join the others.

*

The students and their Pokémon stayed out until the sun started to dip below the horizon, but eventually it was time to go in. Lan had been sketching all afternoon, kept busy by the variety of Pokémon and their constant antics. It wasn't just the Pokémon she'd been sketching; however, she didn't get a chance to look at her drawings until much later in the evening, when everyone had said goodnight and gone back to their rooms.

She spread all the pictures out on her bed, her hand throbbing from all the drawing she'd done. First she looked at the Pokémon group sketches, of which there were seven.

The first sketch was of all the water Pokémon, kicking back in the pond and soaking up the water. Gyarados was rimming the far side of the pond like a giant pool noodle, while Goldeen was in the middle of leaping from the water and doing a flip. Staryu was relaxing in the shallows, but Staryu's sticker had fallen off and it was in the middle of changing points and splashing Goldeen as a result. Wartortle was sitting on Blastoise's shoulder, and the two turtle Pokémon were smiling at one another.

"Five," she counted, turning to the next picture.

It wasn't nearly as complicated, but she liked it all the same. Beedrill was lying on its front on a tree branch, and Zubat was hanging from the branch above it. The two were asleep, and their heads were leaning against one another.

"Seven."

The next picture made her laugh. Exeggcute had finally gotten tired of the bawdy tales Ivysaur and Parasect were exchanging, so the eggs had hopped over and delivered a story so raunchy that Ivysaur was attempting to plug its ears with its vines, and Parasect was waving its claws over the spot its ears _would_ have been, had it had any. Lan had almost missed this scene, and only caught it because Nikki nudged her and pointed at Exeggcute's determined faces on the way over.

"Ten. Sorry Exeggcute, I'm counting you as one."

Venonat and Clefairy had been easy to draw, as the two chubby Pokémon had leaned against one another and also fallen asleep. She'd been tempted to put them in the same picture as the first two sleepers, but then Wigglytuff had wandered over to them and was sitting on their shoulders, looking like the queen of the castle.

"Thirteen."

The next two pictures, especially placed side by side, made her giggle. In the first, Sandslash, Lickitung and Machop were posturing to one another, showing off their muscles and trying to outdo the other two. In the second, Nidoking and Charizard were doing much the same thing, seeing who could hold their section of Onyx in the air the longest. Onyx just looked happy to be getting the attention.

"Nineteen."

The final picture was her favourite; three dogs, a cat, a mouse, and a monkey were racing around the field and tumbling through the grass with one another. Even Growlithe, the newest of the group, had put aside its fear to play. It was leaping over Vulpix, and Jolteon was leaping over it. Meowth was chasing after Mankey in a not-quite-friendly way, for Mankey was holding Pikachu in its arms and cuddling it as it went. She'd had the hardest time sketching this picture, as the six moved so quickly and kept changing positions, which was one of the reasons she liked it so much.

"Twenty five," She sighed and reached for the others drawings she'd done, "and many more to come. Goodness, I hope the principal bought enough Pokechow."

She looked down at the sketches she'd done of the Pokemon's trainers, and started to put them into one group picture. At first she'd debated against putting Suza in the group picture, but after seeing Roselyn and Erica getting along so well there might be hope for her and Suza after all. She doubted it, but one could always hope; if for nothing more than the sake of one's eyebrows.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

It was a busy winter break for Principal Jefferson. While his students left the school to spend time with their family, friends, and Pokémon, he settled in behind his desk and began the less pleasant side of his job: administration.

First came the progress reports on the PokeProjects, and right behind them were the grades from final exams. Between the two, he let out a sigh and made a note to start writing letters asking some students not to return. He then turned to the memos from staff complaining of continued rivalries between different Pods. It wasn't just the fashion war: Red and Yellow had numerous skirmishes in which trainers fought as well as Pokémon.

"It's time for a shuffle," he informed his Alakazam, his pen already hovering over a fresh page. "We need to live up to the name of the school and focus our students on our purpose once more."

~/~

A light dusting of snow fell on Fuchsia city, and while many children raced outside to play, the Reeves lighthouse lacked its usual snowman display. Taped on the inside of the front window was a brief note: _On vacation in Cinnabar. Back in a Week!_

The dusting of snow gradually grew heavier, but the southern island of Cinnabar didn't get a single flake. In fact, save for a few fluffy clouds, the sky was a pristine blue and a nice breeze blew in over the waves. It was a beautiful day. Set off to the side from the harbour for ships was the dock for the Lapras Ferry Service, and as the Lapras from Fuchsia arrived it attracted quite the landing party. First in line was Lysander, who barely waited for Lan to disembark before scooping her into a bear-hug. She only squeaked a little at the contact, and was smiling for the rest of the hugs bestowed by Lysander's parents and sisters. Horace was the one to pick Lysander up, and was moving to hug Mr. Cage when six excited-yet-indignant voices piped up from the vicinity of his feet.

While Horace greeted Exeggcute and gave them his assurance that he hadn't forgotten them, Raichu teetered onto the dock with a small suitcase in tow and promptly dropped it to leap into Lysander's arms.

Once greetings and introductions were out of the way, the group bid farewell to the Lapras and began moving luggage back to the Cage house. Lan grinned up at Lysander, "Have you heard anything from the others? Are they coming?"

Lysander flipped a thumb up and winked at her, "All three."

"Even Jericho?" Lan was slightly incredulous about that one. He'd barely said anything to her since the school tournament, and she couldn't imagine that he'd been any closer to either Lysander or Conrad. Which meant…

"Yeah, Erica twisted his arm," Lysander rolled his eyes. "I think her exact words were 'I know where you live and Ivysaur has no problem grabbing boys now'."

Lan giggled, "That sounds like Erica. Are you sure you have room for all of us?"

"Of course we do!" Mrs. Cage had been listening in rather shamelessly, and she ruffled Lan's hair as if they'd known each other for years, "Didn't Lysander tell you what his father and I do for a living?"

"Er…" Lan readjusted her glasses, "No, I can't say he did."

Mrs. Cage shot Lysander a mother-is-disapproving look and waved a hand at the building—or rather, cluster of buildings—at the end of the street, "We run a resort! Now, it's only casual, not like that fancy place up the beach…"

"Mom…"

"…but I'm sure you'll like it just fine. We don't have a masseuse or…"

"Mom!" Lysander looked embarrassed, "You're doing that depreciation thing again."

"Am I? Whoops!" She placed a hand on her cheek, "I suppose this is why I let your father handle promotional ads!"

All the way to the reception desk, Lan was under the impression that she'd be sharing a room with her father. She was pleasantly surprised, therefore, when she was presented with her own key. Mr. Cage explained that he'd thought it would be more fun for the kids if they all stayed in the part hut together, and Horace agreed.

"When's Erica getting here, is what I want to know," Horace announced. "Boy friends are all well and good, but my daughter needs…"

"Daddy!" Lan didn't want to get into the whole discussion of a healthy social development again, "She has to stop by one of our friend's houses first! I'm sure she'll be along shortly."

~/~

Lan's prediction wasn't far off. She'd put away her things, changed into her summer clothes, and was releasing her Pokémon from their balls when a familiar shadow passed overhead, a smaller one beside it. Apparently, Conrad's Fearow had overcome its fear of prolonged flight. Not wearing any socks and not wanting her Meowth to get any ideas about savaging her bare legs, Lan jogged out from under the cover of the palm trees and waved at the two flying Pokémon. It was Conrad's Fearow, paranoid as it was, that spotted them and cawed, and the two wheeled back around.

"Slash!"

Lan blinked and looked down at Lysander's Sandslash. The mole Pokémon was waving its claws at the Fearow and looking excited, and she smiled. While Sandslash officially belonged to Lysander and Blastoise officially belonged to Conrad, everyone in the group now knew that there would be a swap happening after they graduated. Most importantly, the two Pokémon not only knew it, but they also accepted _why_ they had to stay with their assigned trainer until that time.

Charizard and Fearow landed, but before any greetings could be exchanged Erica griped, "All right, get off me, it's flippin' hot and I'm changing."

Lan blinked at Jericho, who flushed and released his grip around Erica's waist. Erica slid off Charizard and paused only for Lan to point her in the direction of their hut. Then she was gone, leaving Lan to look back at Jericho.

He sighed and hopped off Charizard as well, stumbling a little when he hit the ground, "I'm… not the best with flying. I think I'll take a Lapras back."

Conrad removed his aviator goggles and leapt from Fearow's back full of pomp and pride at his Pokémon's achievement, "You're ridiculous. Flying is the best feeling in the world."

Their dispute was prematurely ended by Lysander and family arriving on the scene and delivering hugs to everyone. Horace looked dubious as to the lack of Erica, but concluded that because Charizard was present the other girl must be around somewhere. He was also eager to meet Jericho, having heard of him as the boy who defended Lan from a vicious harpy, but Jericho smoothly suggested that they talk about something else. Then of course Horace insisted on seeing all of their Pokémon and raced back to his room to grab his notes. He'd originally thought to go without them, but Lan snuck the relevant folders into his suitcase shortly before departure. Though Lysander stayed, the rest of his family went back inside, his parents herding his sisters and telling them they could play with all the pretty Pokémon later.

Jericho and Conrad headed inside to change, after Conrad gave Sandslash an affectionate pat, and Lysander exchanged a heartfelt hug with Blastoise. The boys were back out before Erica, and Conrad aimed a peeved look in the direction of their hut, "Time's wasting, you know. There are all _kinds_ of trainers I could be battling right now!"

Lan was too busy trying not to giggle at Conrad's swimsuit. She was used to seeing Speedos on seniors, not boys her age. It didn't help that his Speedo had a camouflage pattern on it. Jericho was at almost the opposite end of the swimsuit spectrum, with board shorts and a tank-top. Lysander noted them immediately and scooted closer.

Jericho raised an eyebrow at him, "What?"

"You surf?"

"Not… no. These are just longer than regular trunks."

Lysander looked a little put-out, and Conrad folded his arms, "You know, Jericho, vacationing isn't about covering up and shuffling around. It's about soaking up sun."

"Honestly, Conrad, we just got here and you're already being unpleasant."

This was said by Erica, and Conrad turned to defend himself, "I'll have you know I… _what do you think you're wearing? Is that a bra?_"

Erica rolled her eyes, "It's a bikini, and at least I have shorts on the bottom. What's that banana hammock you're in? You had a normal suit in the fall."

"So did you!" he spluttered. "And it's not a banana hammock, it's a Speedo! Real men wear Speedos!"

"My daddy wears a Speedo," Lan put in.

"Yeah! See? You…" Conrad blinked and sent Lan a look that said she wasn't helping, "Anyway. To the beach!"

"Sun block," Lysander immediately cut in. "The rays are pretty fierce this time of year, and you look like you'd burn in a second."

Conrad frowned at this subtle insult, but sat back down on the steps of their hut and caught the sunscreen bottle Lysander tossed at him. After the toss, Lysander advanced on Erica and gave her a hug, "Thought I'd forget you? Welcome to Cinnabar!"

"Ack!" Erica managed to get her shoulder facing Lysander's chest before he hugged her, and managed a wincing smile at him, "Thanks."

A pointed clearing of the throat from Conrad was followed by the sunscreen bottle being shoved rather forcefully in Erica's direction. Erica wriggled free of Lysander and grabbed the bottle, pausing to look over at Jericho, "You okay?"

This immediately made the other three look at him, and Jericho coloured slightly, "I'm fine."

"You want some sunscreen?"

"I'm fine."

"I'll put it on you myself," she offered lightly.

"He said he's fine!" Conrad's voice came out higher than normal and he glared at Erica, "Don't be all flirty or I'll put a sack over you. Jeez."

"I thought you said going on vacation is about soaking up the sun." Erica released Ivysaur and passed it the sunscreen, "You're such a hypocrite."

"Yes, yes I am. Why are…?" Conrad watched as Ivysaur put the lotion on its vines and started rubbing it on Erica's back, "You _must_ be kidding me."

"What can I say? He's very thorough."

~/~

In the end, Ivysaur applied sunscreen to everyone except Conrad, who obstinately refused. Lan watched the Pokémon's face carefully as it worked, but there was no hint of the perverted expression from the fall. Once the waiting period was over, kids and Pokémon set out for the beach. It was a short trip, as the Cage Resort was practically on the water. They closed the gate behind them and a communal sigh rippled through them as toes touched sand.

For a minute or two they just stood there, soaking up the sun and the smell of the ocean. Then Lysander nudged Conrad and pointed down the beach at a volleyball net, "In my experience, playing volleyball attracts crowds. Then you can look around for battles. What do you think?"

Conrad puffed out his chest, "I also happen to be quite good at volleyball."

A muscular hand thumped down on his shoulder, and he jumped before looking up at Horace, "Er, hi Mr. Reeves…"

"I leave for five minutes and you kids try to sneak off on me. I'll have you know that I was quite the volleyball fanatic at your age. What do you say, boy? Us versus them?"

"Er…"Conrad glanced down. Lan was quite correct: her father _did_ wear a Speedo. "What about your research?"

"Oh, bosh! Research can wait!" He laughed heartily and glanced over at Erica. Then he blinked, "That's an interesting swimsuit, Miss Hunter."

Erica smiled at him, "Thanks Mr. Reeves."

"Any chance you have an extra for Lan?"

"_Volleyball_!" Conrad marched across the sand, "What are we waiting for?"

~/~

"…and make sure to always lock up before leaving."

"Yes father."

"And no crazy parties, you know I—"

"_Yes_, father, thank you."

"It's just the three of you there?"

Roselyn frowned at the video screen, and Mr. Hyde let out some nervous laughter. She didn't return it, "I _did_ suggest we book a hotel room, but you _insisted_ on the cabana."

Cabana was an understatement: the place was practically a mansion.

"No Hyde is staying in a hotel."

"Yes, we've covered that. Goodbye, father."

"Have fun, de—"

Roselyn hung up and wiped the annoyance from her face before turning back to Nikki and Ginny, "Now that that's settled, take whichever room you want."

It didn't take all that long for them to settle in. After all, they intended to buy most of their clothes while they were here. They agreed to go for a walk along the beach, but as they headed out the back door Roselyn paused by the hall mirror with a small frown on her face. Her hand went to her shortened locks, and the frown deepened a little. True, it was exactly what she'd asked for, and her hair still brushed her shoulders—it wasn't like a boy's haircut—but she wasn't sure whether she liked it or not.

Ginny moved to stand beside her and put her hands on Roselyn's shoulders, "It looks amazing. Stop fussing."

"Do you think…?"

"Yes."

Roselyn smirked at her, "I didn't get to finish."

"It doesn't matter," Ginny steered her away from the mirror, "I know what you were going to ask."

A small flush appeared on Roselyn's face, "Is it that obvious?"

"Oh please, only entirely. Nikki, left or right?"

Nikki was looking through the telescope on the Hyde's back deck, an incredulous expression on her face, "Definitely right."

"Why?"

"There's a volleyball game going on," Nikki grinned, "and you'll never _guess_ who's playing."

~/~

Conrad leapt up and spiked Erica's serve back over the net, but Jericho planted his knees in the sand and bumped the ball high enough for Lan to volley it back. Horace set his partner up for another spike, but this time Lysander was at the net and tipped the ball when Conrad hit it. The soft thud of the volleyball hitting the sand was overshadowed by a much larger one as Horace dove for the ball and missed.

Horace laughed loudly and grinned up at Conrad, "I think we might be beat, son. Too many of them."

Conrad frowned, clearly not pleased with the idea of calling it quits, but Lan and Lysander were already inching for the water so he shrugged, "It was a valiant effort."

"That's the spirit!" Horace pushed himself back to his feet and clapped Conrad on the back.

While the kids headed for the waves, Lan handing her father her glasses before she went, Horace sat under a nearby palm tree and took out a fresh notebook. Where he'd been concealing it was anyone's guess, but this had the immediate effect of drawing Lysander's Exeggcute over, as well as a few other Pokémon who wanted some shade. None of Lan's Pokémon came to the water, but Erica's Gyarados was already there, and was joined by Blastoise, Wartortle, and Staryu. Lan was happy that the trade between Conrad and Lysander was taking place: she could only imagine how upset Lysander would be that two of his friends had a turtle Pokémon and he didn't.

Both Lan and Lysander took the direct method, diving headfirst into the water and coming up spluttering. The other three waded in, and soon all five of them were splashing around and laughing.

After a while, Lysander looked further out in the water at the waves and casually suggested, "Anyone feel like surfing?"

"I don't know how," Lan replied nervously.

"Neither do I," Erica admitted.

Lysander looked at the other two boys, and all he got was silence. On Conrad's part, that probably meant that he didn't know how but didn't want to say so. As for Jericho… when he'd asked earlier Jericho hadn't said 'no' immediately, he'd started with a 'not'. Not what? Not very well? Not very often? Not unless the waves are two storeys high?

Jericho raised an eyebrow at him, "What are you thinking?"

"Nothing," Lysander replied, in that tone of voice that indicated that he definitely _was_ thinking something. "Just that it's always fun to learn new th—"

"Hey you guys!"

They all turned to look at the beach, where Nikki was waving enthusiastically at them, "Small world! We're staying just up the beach at Roselyn's cabana! What are you doing?"

"Swimming," Conrad remarked dryly, his gaze taking in Ginny and Roselyn as the other two girls approached at a more sedate pace. "Is it just the three of you?"

"Yup!" By this point Nikki had kicked off her flip-flops and was wading in to join them, "We thought it might be nice to come down here and get away from all the snobby parties going on further north."

"_Roselyn_ wanted to get _away_ from snobby parties?" Erica clearly didn't buy this for a second. She sent a bemused look Roselyn's way, but it turned to a confused blink. By the time she recovered Roselyn was within speaking distance, "You cut your hair."

"I… yes, I did." Roselyn tossed her head, the shorter locks catching the breeze, "I felt the need to change my hairstyle."

"It suits you." Eris smiled at her, but it turned into a snicker when she saw the mutinous look on Conrad's face, "Oh, come on, I'm just being nice. This isn't going to turn into a fashion-talk."

"Good. Because that doesn't suit _you_." He didn't even notice that Nikki had taken one of his hands in hers and draped his arm over her shoulders. "I think I'm going to go challenge some trainers. I'm making the assumption none of you want to battle me."

Lan shook her head, "We just _got_ here, Conrad. Can't you enjoy the sun for more… more than… um… hi Ginny."

While she'd been talking, Ginny had waded into the water and over to her. The taller girl now had the skirt-hem of Lan's bathing suit between thumb and forefinger, and was inspecting it with exasperation, "Lan, your swimsuit is brown."

"Well, yes…"

"It's _brown_. I didn't know they even _made_ brown swimsuits! Although," she released the fabric and smirked, "trust you to find the company that does."

"Okay! You girls can stay here and talk about this, I'm—" Conrad went to wade towards the shore and only then discovered Nikki under his arm, "Bwah! What are…?"

"I'm coming too," she informed him with a large smile. "Jolteon and I should do really well against the trainers on the island."

"Oh… well… yeah, I guess you would." Conrad tried to nonchalantly take his arm from her shoulders, but she was holding it there. When he shot her an annoyed look she returned an innocent one at him.

Lysander was looking a little put-out, and Erica grabbed his wrist, tugging him towards the shore, "Oh, all right, I'll surf with you, but you'd _better_ be a good teacher."

"I am!" Lysander reversed their hands so he was holding _her_ wrist, and ran for the surfboard rentals with a lot more enthusiasm than she was showing.

After a moment of consideration, Roselyn followed, and this prompted Jericho to head after them as well. She glanced up at him, "You surf?"

"Sort of," he admitted, "I've taken snowboarding lessons. You?"

"Ha! No." Roselyn shook her head with a little more energy than she needed to, just to feel her hair tickle her shoulders, "I'm just going to watch Erica wipe out."

"How friendly of you," Jericho muttered.

"Isn't it though?" Roselyn blinked her lashes at him and kept walking.

The four left in the water, Conrad, Nikki, Lan, and Ginny, looked around at each other. Conrad inched a little closer to the beach, "Battling now."

Lan hesitated, giving Ginny time to suggest, "Let's go shopping for a new swimsuit, Lan."

"Battling! I'll get my Vulpix!"

~/~

Horace watched the kids split up, happy when Lan went with two other girls after picking up her glasses. True, he hadn't met them yet, but the fact that she had even more female friends made him happy. His little girl was getting all social.

"Almost makes me want to cry," he remarked to the air.

Exeggcute looked up at him, not bothering to ask what he meant. Sometimes the minds of geniuses just weren't meant to be understood. They continued pouring over his research, clearly impressed with some of his findings and hypotheses.

He continued to sit there, his feet flopped out in front of him and his back against a palm tree that was bending back a little from his weight. Occasionally he'd make a note in his book, but mostly he was just enjoying the day. Raichu was crouched hesitantly nearby; it had wanted to go after Lysander, but didn't particularly like the thought of a piece of wood being the only thing between it and the waves.

From up the beach came three young men, all running as fast as they could. Horace watched them with interest, and caught the following snatches of conversation:

"Special tournament…"

"…sign-ups today only…"

"…rare Pokémon egg as a prize!"

Then they were gone, and Horace scratched his chin thoughtfully, "I suppose that's the sort of thing I should just leave to the children. It's not like I've battled in years. Nope, I'm far too mature and dignified for a tournament like that."

He was already scooping up Raichu and jogging after the boys.

~/~

It was a good thing Erica had done all that exercise with Gyarados during the school months, because she was still a little winded when they got to the surfboard shack and she couldn't imagine what shape she'd be in otherwise. To their surprise, the young man at the shack was closing up shop.

He obviously knew Lysander, because he scratched the back of his head in embarrassment and pointed to a poster on the corkboard nailed to the seaside wall of the shack, "Sorry Lysander. There's a Pokémon tournament down the beach, and the prize is some really rare Pokémon. I'm going to enter!"

"But…" Lysander looked between Erica and the poster, "I was going to teach my… what are the regulations?"

"Lemme see," the surfer scanned the poster, "sign-ups today only… you're only allowed _one_ Pokémon, it can't be a flying-type, and it has to be the same one through the whole thing. It's… an obstacle-course tournament? Huh, weird. Anyway, I'm signing up. Later!"

Lysander watched him jog off, suggesting lightly, "Could be fun?"

"We aren't allowed our own Pokémon at school, Lysander," Erica pointed out.

"No, I know, but… could be fun?"

Erica sighed, turning to Jericho and Roselyn as the other two caught up, "Slight change of plans."

~/~

"Where the heck is everyone?" Conrad was indignant, and stomped around outside the Fire Gym while he vented, "Locked up, no trainers even! This is prime battling season, why would…?"

His rant was prematurely ended by a flyer smacking into his face, and Nikki giggled at him. She peeled it off him and let Lan take it, more interested in rubbing Conrad's paper-cut nose.

Lan adjusted her glasses and spread the flyer, trying to ignore how close Ginny's chin was to her shoulder. It was disconcerting, "Here's your answer, Conrad. There's a tournament going on tomorrow and sign-ups are toda—"

That was as far as she got. Conrad snatched the paper from her and scanned it with greedy eyes, "This! This is exactly what I was looking for! I'm signing up, right now!"

The three girls exchanged looks, and Lan sighed, "So much for a relaxing vacation."

~/~/~


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Lan counted herself very fortunate that Mr. Cage owned a Hypno; that was the only reason any of them had managed to sleep the night before. It was the morning of the obstacle-course tournament, and even though she'd signed up she still didn't know exactly what to expect. The sign-up booth had required that she state which Pokemon she would be using, and also sign a disclaimer that she acknowledged the tournament was an "anything goes" style. She'd signed, not entirely sure what that meant, and it had been a topic of conversation that they'd all poured over at dinner.

The consensus, which she wasn't sure she liked, was that people could help each other through the challenges of the obstacle course. On the one hand, that meant that she could help her friends, and vice versa, but on the other hand, what if other people ganged up on her? It didn't seem particularly fair, but for the chance at a rare Pokemon egg, why not?

She'd woken up to the sound of rhythmic creaking of wood, and shuffled out onto the deck to find Conrad doing warm-up exercises with his Blastoise. He had a look of utter determination on his face, while Blastoise seemed to just be humouring him. Lysander sat a few feet away, munching on an apple while his Staryu floated close by. It had been a matter of debate as to whether or not Staryu counted as a flying Pokemon, as technically speaking it could hover, but upon demonstrating to the sign-up clerk that Staryu couldn't carry him, Lysander was allowed to enter with his water Pokemon.

It had taken a great deal of apologetic stammering for Lan to convince Zubat that it couldn't be her Pokemon of choice, but Meowth hadn't needed any convincing at all. Vulpix had simply hopped up onto the sign-up table, and that had been that. Lan had her doubts about using a fire Pokemon in an obstacle course taking place on an island, but the fox Pokemon had refused to let her back out of signing up, probably because it was still annoyed she hadn't participated in the school tournament.

Conrad was in the middle of squats when Erica came out, tying back her bed-head into a ponytail. She looked at him with amusement, "Why. Just, why?"

"Pulled muscles are the leading cause of forfeiture in competitions of stamina," Conrad informed her, not even pausing in his routine. "By loosening my muscles prior to competition, I gain a definitive edge."

Blastoise gave a supportive "Stoise!" and reached down in an attempt to touch its toes, its tail wiggling for balance.

"Well, good for you," Erica sat on the steps and held out a bottle of sunscreen, letting Ivysaur apply it to her shoulders. "Don't forget to put this on; limber muscles don't do a thing for you if your skin is crispy."

Lan let Ivysaur put some lotion on her as well, trying not to feel intimidated by how serious the others were feeling about the competition. She knew she was already at a disadvantage with a fire Pokemon, but part of her wondered if it wasn't a mistake for Conrad to be picking a large Pokemon like Blastoise. After all, when she thought of an obstacle course, she thought of being able to crawl through small spaces and twist around stuff, which the turtle Pokemon definitely couldn't do. Still, she wasn't going to point this out to Conrad; he wasn't one to be corrected once he'd decided something.

"Good morning, kids!"

With a surprised blink, Lan took in her father. He'd obtained a sweatband for his head and two for his wrists from somewhere, and a matching, albeit smaller, set were being worn by Raichu. Dressed in a loose tank-top and a different Speedo than the one from yesterday, he was obviously ready to compete.

"Daddy? Did you sign up for the obstacle course too?"

"Of course, Lan dear! I feel that my lifestyle of late has led my muscles to lose some of their mass, and this will be the perfect way to tighten them up again."

Lan was used to this, but her friends were all staring at him; he was built like an ox, and it was hard to imagine him with any more muscles. She smiled, "I suppose we should get going soon. The others are going to meet us there."

"Is Jericho competing?" Conrad finished his warm-up and glanced at the door to their hut, always keen to challenge one of his male friends.

"I think so," Lysander got up and headed back inside, "I'll see if he's up."

/

To say that the beach was crowded was an understatement, but Lan didn't think that everyone there was a competitor. Rather, a lot of them were there to simply stare at the manmade island-castle that had seemingly sprung up over night, and sat a few hundred feet out in the water. It was difficult to make out details from this far, but it looked like there were several archways that led deeper into the floating building. Set up a little further along the beach was a brightly-coloured dock that jutted into the water, and the width of it suggested that it would be the starting point of the race.

Horace led the way, as his mass was quite effective for clearing a wake for the rest of them to follow in, and in no time they were standing before the dock. Sure enough, two tables were set up for contestants to verify that they'd signed up the day before.

While her father signed in, Lan looked around for Nikki and Ginny. Ginny had declined from participating, but said she would watch and cheer them on. What she intended to watch from became obvious: a grand-stand was set up with a large screen in front of it, and Lan had no doubt that there were cameras set up throughout the castle-island.

"Lan!" Nikki moved through the crowd towards her, Jolteon trotting at her side, "Isn't this exciting? Are you ready?"

"Yes," Lan nodded her head in determination.

"Awesome! Come on, let's sign in!"

Nikki checked her name off the list with a flourish and moved past the tables, standing right in front of the rope to the dock. Lan could see why she was doing it; being at the front of the pack, if you were a fast swimmer, had it's advantages. On the other hand, Lan wasn't that fast, and being up there would probably result in her getting jumped on or shoved around. Conrad, on the other hand, took a spot right next to Nikki, and Blastoise did an effective job of blocking a third of the dock all by itself. Erica slid into place a few feet behind Conrad, and waved at Lan to stand beside her. Lan hesitated, but Erica's eyes suggested she had a plan, so she moved up beside her with a nervous smile. Her glasses were already tucked in a waterproof case that clipped onto the strap of her swimsuit, and she didn't particularly care that she was getting strange looks because of it.

"CONTESTANTS!" They all flinched at the volume of the loudspeaker, but it didn't get any quieter, "TAKE YOUR PLACES IN FRONT OF THE DOCK. THE 'ANYTHING GOES' OBSTACLE COURSE RACE IS ABOUT TO BEGIN!"

Lan felt her stomach lurch with nerves, and her knees wobbled a bit. She really, really didn't want to be run over by enthusiastic competitors before she even reached the water.

"Relax, Lan dear." Horace came up on her other side, stretching his back out and intimidating a few people, "This is going to be fun! Wait for your old dad at the finish line, will you?"

"Um… sure daddy." If her glasses had been on her face, Lan would have adjusted them out of habit.

"CONTESTANTS READY…"

Ahead of her, Conrad was already in a sprinter's crouch. The whole crowd was tense…

BANG!

As soon as the starting gun was fired, the rope baring the way to the dock dropped, and the crowd of competitors surged forwards. To its credit, Vulpix didn't seem to show any fear about being seconds away from jumping into the ocean, and Lan had to wonder if it was trust in her or overconfidence in its own strength that made it that way. Conrad hesitated a half-step, letting Blastoise leap into the water ahead of him, and then hopped onto his Pokemon's back. Nikki dove into the water and came up in a front crawl, Jolteon padding along slightly behind her. Horace plugged his nose with one hand and cannon-balled into the water, and when he came up with a splutter Raichu hopped from the dock onto his shoulders.

Erica tugged Lan off to one side as more competitors charged past, and picked up Ivysaur, "Grab your Vulpix, Lan."

Lan did as she was told, and blinked when Ivysaur reached out a vine and wrapped it around both girls' waists. The other vine whipped out and fastened around one of Blastoise's cannons, and there was just enough time for Lan to brace herself before she was tugged off the dock. Somehow, and she was going to accredit Blastoise's speed for most of it, she didn't fall flat on her face. Rather, she braced her heels and managed a half-ski, half-trip across the water.

As they passed Horace, he looked up from the frog crawl he was doing and cheered, "There's using your head, sweetie! Good luck!"

Lan wondered if this counted as cheating, but many other trainers were doing something similar. On the far side of the crowd of swimmers, three trainers were sitting on a Lapras, and while she admired their teamwork, she had to wonder how Lapras was going to move about when inside the castle. She got her answer soon enough; the Lapras dropped two of the three trainers off, and the third headed back to shore. Effective, if somewhat cheap.

Conrad eventually noticed the vines on his Pokemon, and glared back at them, but when he saw who was freeloading he just shrugged and looked ahead once more. Apparently he didn't feel mean enough to tug the vines free and make Lan and her fire Pokemon sink.

Lan risked a glance back, and saw that her father and Nikki were in the middle of the pack together, and Jolteon had taken refuge on Horace's shoulders. Lysander was slightly behind them, but using Staryu as a type of flutter-board he soon drew level. Jericho was doing something similar, but got sidetracked when two Gyarados started roaring at each other instead of focusing on the race.

When Blastoise reached the castle-island, it waited for Conrad to hop off onto the landing dock before pulling itself up. Then it waited for Ivysaur to reel in, despite Conrad's annoyance. Lan felt much better once back on a solid surface, and her spray-soaked Vulpix did too, promptly jumping from her arms and shaking itself off.

"Okay, no more clinging," Conrad told them. "Blastoise and I are going to win this thing. Come on, Blastoise!"

He ran through the archway without difficulty, but when Blastoise went to follow its sides got stuck. It backed up slowly, turned sideways, and tried to fit that way, but this time its back and belly wedged in place.

Conrad looked apoplectic, "No way! Come on, Blastoise, just squeeze through, it opens up once you're inside!"

Erica and Lan, along with their Pokemon, jogged through the archway to the right, and Lan suggested, "Just take out one of the support columns. It won't cause the whole thing to collapse."

"You… yeah, I was just thinking that." Conrad pointed at the column in between the two arches, "Use skull bash on that, Blastoise! Then you can get through!"

Other trainers were running past them, and with a last look at Conrad and Blastoise, Lan and Erica kept going. At the end of the long corridor were three holes in the wall, and trainers with smaller Pokemon were crawling through them. Those with Pokemon who couldn't fit were heading up some stairs to the right. A loud crash behind them alerted them to Blastoise being through, and Erica did some rough measuring, "I don't think Ivysaur can fit in there. Try to strap your flowerbud down, Ivysaur."

Her Pokemon did as instructed, but the bud was too large to fit. With a sigh, Erica turned for the stairs, "Good luck, Lan!"

Lan nodded, and let Vulpix go ahead of her. The fox was in and out of the long pipe in no time, but Lan took a little longer. Part of that was putting her glasses back on, but she'd never been fond of crawling through plastic pipes; she always seemed to put her knee on a bolt, and those things hurt when they dug in. Vulpix barked encouragement at her from the other end of the pipe, but didn't seem irritated. Perhaps it was grateful it hadn't had to risk swimming.

/

Conrad had reached the pipes, and he glared at them, "This competition is _clearly_ biased in favour of primary-stage Pokemon! Come on, Blastoise, up the stairs!"

Up the stairs they went, but the alternative obstacle that greeted them wasn't any better. A vertical wall at least fifteen feet in height stood before them, and at the top was a ledge with a flashing arrow that clearly showed they had to scale it.

Erica and Ivysaur were already there, and she glanced at him, "If your Blastoise throws my Ivysaur up there, he can vine whip us all up after."

Conrad frowned, but couldn't really see another way around the problem, "How do I know you won't leave me here?"

She rolled her eyes, "I'll get him to pull you up first. Deal?"

"Fine, Blast—"

The turtle Pokemon had already picked Ivysaur up, and threw it towards the ledge. Ivysaur landed less than gracefully, but extended its vines down for first Conrad, then Erica, and finally Blastoise. Other trainers were looking like they wanted a lift as well, but they were out of luck.

"No more clinging?" Erica suggested lightly.

"Yes, well… that." Conrad turned and ran down the hall, Blastoise thundering along after him.

/

Lysander, Nikki and Horace arrived at the pipes only a few seconds later. Nikki and Jolteon disappeared into a pipe with a wave, and Lysander was relieved to discover that Staryu's points just managed to fit. Horace, on the other hand, chuckled and shook his head, "I'm afraid these just weren't built for a man like me. Come along, Raichu, we're going this way."

Raichu sighed at its owner's size and trotted beside him up the stairs. They passed several competitors on their way back down, all of whom were muttering about the prize not being worth it. Horace frowned, expecting some daunting task, but when they got there all he saw was…

"A wall? Ha! A simple wall won't stop us. Raichu, use Swift and create some handholds, will you please?"

Raichu nodded and flicked its tail, and a dozen horizontal stars zoomed towards the wall and embedded themselves halfway in. Then it hopped onto Horace's shoulder, and he climbed the wall with enthusiasm, "Cake walk!"

/

Lan crawled out of the pipe and patted Vulpix's head, and then they jogged forward and up some stairs to the next obstacle. A huge open room met their eyes, and Lan gulped. Directly in front of them was a post with an arrow pointing in each direction, and instructions for trainer and Pokemon to split up. Lan looked at the two choices and gulped again. On one side was a rope bridge that swayed back and forth; on the other, several platforms were jerking up and down at random intervals.

Vulpix didn't wait for her to pick one, it just barked "Pix!" and trotted for the platform path. Lan felt relieved, as the rope bridge was pretty clearly the easier path, and headed towards it. Her trip across it was slow, but she stayed on, unlike the trainer ahead of her who took a misstep and tumbled over the handhold into the water below. It wasn't exactly a short drop, either. She paused to see how Vulpix was doing, and felt a surge of pride; the fox Pokemon was practically to the other side already, and treated the platforms like they were standing still.

Her peripheral vision picked up a familiar Pokemon, and she saw Nikki's Jolteon hopping across the platforms as well. Vulpix reached the end and barked at her to hurry up.

"Don't worry, Lan," the closeness of Nikki's voice made it clear that she was making good time also, "I won't shove or anything."

Lan didn't know why this news was a relief, as she hadn't thought that Nikki would do anything like that in the first place, but she kept going at her steady pace. When she was ten feet from the end, however, the rope bridge gave a lurch and she clung to the handhold with a squeak, not daring to look back.

"Hey!" Nikki's voice was indignant, "What are you doing? That's not very sporting!"

"Anything goes!" The snide response was from a male voice, and the bridge jerked again.

Now Lan looked over her shoulder, and saw that two boys a little older than her were taking it in turns to jump on the base of the bridge, hoping to knock them off. Vulpix was waiting for her at the other end of the bridge, and growling at the two dirty competitors. This, more than anything else, encouraged Lan to inch her way towards the end, and when she got there she turned back for Nikki.

Her friend was still a third of the way down the bridge, and she looked up at Lan with an encouraging smile, "You keep going, if these jerks think they can pass me they've got another thing coming!"

Jolteon barked at its trainer's willingness to sacrifice a victory, and ran back to the end of the platforms, ready to block the trainers' Pokemon from crossing.

Lan nodded and continued on, missing the arrival of Lysander and Staryu. Lysander had been on the point of taking the bridge, when he saw the problem Nikki was having with the two trainers, "Staryu, you go that way and get Nikki to grab your tines. I'll take the platforms."

Staryu drifted in the direction of the bridge, and simply floated around the two trainers and towards Nikki. When it got there, it tapped its tines on her hands, and she smiled and grabbed them, letting it pull her steadily along and to the edge of the bridge.

Lysander, meanwhile, was treating the platforms in much the same way as a surfer would treat a particularly rough wave, and carefully hopping from platform to platform each time the one he was on calmed. Three platforms from the end, he caught up with the two trainers' Pokemon, two Poliwrath, which were being held at bay by Jolteon's electricity. Jolteon diverted its shocks away from Lysander, which allowed him to reach the end, but when he got there he turned to Nikki and called, "What do you think? Keep racing, or stay and teach this bullies a lesson?"

Nikki stood up and glared back down the bridge at the two, "Lesson time."

/

Theirs wasn't the only area to have turned into a battle arena. Conrad and Erica arrived on a balcony above their next challenge to find a giant maze awaiting them, and several fights already under way. At the far end were three archways, and from the way they veered off it looked like they each led to a different challenge.

Erica glanced down at Ivysaur, then at the width of the maze walls. Her Pokemon seemed to understand what she was suggesting and wrapped its vines around her waist, lowering her onto the top of a wall and waiting until she got her balance before following after.

"That's cheating!" Conrad exclaimed indignantly, using his hands to find an angle to one of the archways from the bottom of the stairs. Once that was done, he ran down the stairs with Blastoise behind him, glaring at Erica as she made her way along the top of the wall, "Blatant cheating. Blastoise, use skull bash and make a path through the walls at," he pointed, "this angle."

At the first crash to the wall, Erica wobbled and almost fell, but after that she changed her target to the right-hand archway and balance-jogged fairly easily to her destination, ignoring a trainer's confused look as she hopped over top of her.

Conrad and Blastoise made good progress most of the way, though there was some scuffling when they smashed through a wall and into the middle of a Pokemon battle. The battling Pincer and Vileplume stared at him, along with their incredulous trainers, and Conrad cleared his throat, "Just… passing through. Don't mind us."

They kept going, and reached the left-hand corridor shortly after.

/

"My word, Raichu, someone is crunching some plaster, aren't they?" Horace's remark was for the crashing noises ahead, but when he got to the maze the culprit was nowhere to be seen. He sighed at the destruction as he jogged down the stairs and followed the smash-path, "Well, I won't look a gift-Ponyta in the mouth, but I think a maze would have been glorious fun."

Raichu clearly agreed, and looked quite put-out that someone had vandalized it so shamelessly. When they reached the left-hand archway, Horace shook his head and pointed at the center one instead, "We don't want to follow whoever's destroying all the obstacles. This way."

/

Lan's next challenge may not have been moving, but it still looked intimidating. A mess of ladders, bridges, and slides confronted her, and she could barely make out the archway to the next challenge on the far side. With a determined exhale of breath she started forward, following Vulpix. The fox was scenting at something, and as she couldn't even begin to guess what route of the dozens to take, she simply followed after it. Every now and then Vulpix would sit, but that was only when they reached a ladder that needed to be climbed, so Lan would pick it up and climb one-handed.

It didn't sound very noisy in this room, and Lan found herself beginning to wonder if she was in the lead. Part of her didn't want to get her hopes up, but the other part was already thinking of how wonderful it would be if she won.

"This is bollocks!"

She was jerked out of her daydream and looked back through the mess of obstacles at Conrad, who was standing there with a mighty frown on his face. It didn't look like Blastoise would be able to fit, and she was about to call this observation back when Conrad shrugged, "Just skull bash this too, Blastoise."

Lan felt her glasses slip down her nose a little as she sent Conrad an unimpressed look. She knew she'd suggested he use that tactic to get through the column back at the castle's entrance, but apparently he'd been using the same one the whole way through. Then the first crash came to the 3D maze she was on, and Lan squeaked. Vulpix barked and ran on ahead, pausing at the top of a slide before disappearing down it. She followed, hoping that this maze was made of several parts and she wouldn't feel the whole thing shaking until she reached the end.

/

When Erica reached her next obstacle, she sighed, "Well, I guess vines can only help us so far, huh Ivysaur?"

The challenge before them was, quite simply, a giant moving sidewalk, but on maximum speed and moving towards them. There were no rails or any other type of grip for Ivysaur's vines, and it was clear that the only way across would be to sprint.

Ivysaur was quite irritated, but launched into a dash without complaint. Erica leapt after it, and the two slowly began to move towards the far archway.

/

After many, many stairs, Horace and Raichu reached their next challenge. Horace paused to wipe the sweat from his cheeks, and braced his fists on his hips, a hearty laugh coming from his throat, "Well now, this is starting to get physically challenging! What have we here?"

He stepped forward, finding himself on a ledge looking over a quite dizzying drop. Water was below, _far_ below, but from where he was standing he could also see some of the other challenges. To his right, he could see Erica and her Ivysaur working up a healthy sweat on a treadmill, while off to his left he saw both Lan and Conrad in a huge wooden ladder maze.

"How disappointing, Raichu, that looks like it would have caused some wonderful perspiration!"

Raichu glanced over at the maze, its tongue poking out of its mouth as it panted. Then it squeaked, for Horace had scooped it up and put it on his shoulders, deliberately putting its paws on either side of his head. At first it didn't know why, but then it looked towards their own challenge and its eyes went wide. There was a ladder that they could use to climb all the way down and then hop across buoys to the far side, climbing up another ladder to a platform, or…

Horace eyed the rope hanging halfway across the room, stroking his chin thoughtfully, "Clearly, what needs to be done here is a running start. Hold fast, Raichu!"

It did, and safe in the knowledge that he couldn't see its face and berate it with bravado for not glorifying in the challenge, it closed its eyes tight.

/

"AAAAAA EYAYAAAAA EYAYAAAAA!"

Lan's head whipped around to the right, and she stared wide-eyed as she watched her father launch himself from a high platform and disappear behind the partition between his challenge and hers. For a moment she didn't see the rope, but then it snapped tight and she saw it swing in a pendulum motion. Her father appeared again, briefly, as he reached out a leg and tried to hook it on the platform on the far side. Barely, just barely, he got it, and pulled himself up. Then he dusted himself off, gave Lan an encouraging wave, and disappeared.

Lan blinked, not entirely sure that she'd seen what just happened. Even Conrad had stopped giving Blastoise commands, completely distracted by the Tarzan-wannabe in his Speedo, with a terrified Raichu in tow.

/

Watching from the grand stand, Ginny and Roselyn experienced the same vertigo as everyone else when Mr. Reeves mistakenly took the video camera's support cord to be a rope and swung on it. Up in the control booth, several of the cameramen exchanged flabbergasted looks. Then one shrugged and suggested, "Anything goes?"

/

Lan finally slid down to the end of her obstacle, her whole body going numb from the feeling of continuous skull bashes to the maze. Conrad wasn't far behind her, and she was already planning some choice words she'd have for him when this competition was over. Suddenly feeling tired, she stumbled up some stairs and was greeted by a stupidly-enthusiastic arrow directing her to the final challenge off to her right. Finally she made it to the entrance, and went inside.

Horace was standing there, and when he heard noise behind him he scooped her into a hug, "Marvellous fun, this is!"

"Urgh, Daddy…" Lan peeled her cheek off his chest, "You stink."

"Do I?" Horace sniffed his armpit and promptly set her down again, "My word, I do. We _must_ go swimming after this."

"Daddy, _why_ is Raichu clinging to your head?"

"Hmm?" Horace reached up and patted Raichu, "I haven't been able to get it off since we swung on that rope. I think it's petrified."

It certainly looked it, with its paws digging into his skin and its eyes squeezed shut. Actually, it kind of looked like a novelty hat.

Horace turned back to the final challenge. On the floor in front of them were hundreds of tiles, each one about the size of a dinner plate and with different letters. He put fists on hips and mused, "I saw a movie like this, once. Now, we just have to use our brains and think of a likely phrase."

From behind them came the thuds of heavy footsteps, and then Conrad and Blastoise joined them. Conrad wasn't looking at the floor at all; instead, his eyes were on the pedestal at the far end, up a long flight of stairs. At the top, resting on a cushion, sat the egg.

"All right! No one got here first!"

That wasn't strictly true, as a large hole in the tiles about fifteen feet away proved that someone had tried and failed to get the puzzle right, but it didn't stop him from perking up considerably. Only then did he look down at the tiles and frown, "Great, I hate word puzzles."

"Well, it's probably something easy, like Anything Goes." As soon as Lan said it, Vulpix gave her an unimpressed look, and she realized she should have kept her mouth shut.

"Thanks Lan," Conrad grinned and hesitantly stepped on an A. It held, and that was all the encouragement he needed to begin searching for an N.

"Vul!" Vulpix raced down the floor to another A and hopped on it, barking at Lan to follow.

Horace went the other way and found his own A, and the three started for the finish. Conrad was already on I, but Blastoise was taking longer to follow due to its size and need to step on only one tile at a time. Vulpix found the letters fairly quickly, but Lan's cautious nature and inability to jump that far meant that she progressed slower. As for Horace, his Raichu continued to function as an oversized head-warmer, but he was making decent progress.

Conrad was on G, and looking for his second one without a lot of luck. Lan's Vulpix reached G and encountered the same problem, and soon Horace was there as well; there just didn't seem to be another G in front of them at a reachable distance.

Lan caught up to her Vulpix and picked it up so they could both stand on the same tile, and looked around. It was then that she noticed some tiles didn't have letters, and she thought of an idea.

Learning from her mistake from last time, she leaned close to Vulpix's ear and whispered, "I think we have to step on a space, because there's a space between Anything and Goes. Do you see a G we could reach if we stepped on a blank tile first?"

Vulpix looked around, and then yipped softly and wiggled free, leaping from the tile Lan was on to a blank one a few feet away. Lan followed, suddenly in first place and feeling giddy again. Unfortunately, Conrad was watching her closely and as soon as he saw her step on a blank tile, he immediately followed suit.

Horace, meanwhile, hadn't cottoned on to what the children were doing, as he didn't believe in cheating off of someone else's test, as it were. He tapped his chin, "Really, I suppose I could skip the G. I'll just look for an O further along. What do you think, Raichu?"

No response.

"Right, let's find an O. There. Now, a-one, and a-two," he squatted, pumping his arms back and forth in preparation for the leap, "and a-three!"

Lan was on her second G when she saw her father leap and land on his… sort of. Unfortunately for him, the tiles had a slight spring in them to accommodate heavier Pokemon, and the force of his jump popped him back into the air and forward.

"Oh heavens, an E!" He propelled his arms forwards, catching the edge of an E and a P, and the P tile crumbled away under his foot. Horace's arms continued pinwheeling, and the only reason he didn't fall backwards and cause more tiles to crumble was because Raichu caught a glimpse of the water below and lurched forwards with a squeal, balancing him out.

Horace clapped his hands, "What teamwork! Now for an S!"

Conrad jumped onto his own E, determination rising, "Blastoise, we're so close! Hurry up!"

Lan, still on G, realized that if the beginning of this room was any indication, her father would wait for her once he was done the puzzle, and decided that that wasn't right, "You can do it, Daddy! You can win!"

"Oh, well thank you Lan, dear!" Horace looked at the edge of the tiles, "I suppose I'll skip the S as well."

"Stop skipping letters, it's cheating!" Conrad snapped.

"Bosh. Anything Goes! Or in my case," Horace leapt the distance and thudded down on solid ground, "Anything Oe! What fun! Come Raichu, more stairs!"

The mouse sighed and ran after him. Conrad frowned and moved for his S, but before he could get there a shadow was cast over him. His Blastoise, following his command to hurry up, was trying to step on E, and ended up belly-bumping Conrad forward and onto a section comprised of M, K, C, and W. The tiles crumbled away, and took Conrad with them. Blastoise peered over the edge as its trainer fell the fifteen feet to the water and came up spluttering, and then it gave a delighted, "Stoise!" and jumped in after him.

By the time Lan spelled out the phrase, her father had reached the top of the stairs, and she watched with a proud smile as he picked up the egg. Then she pinched her nose when he put his ear close to it and shook it, where upon Raichu smacked his hands with its tail and took the egg away.

"I think Daddy deserved to win," she told Vulpix, kneeling down and petting it. "He had the most fun. But I'm still very proud of you."

Vulpix snorted, lifting its nose into the air, but then it head-butted her leg and gave her a brief lick on the nose.

From up the stairs came Horace's wounded voice, and the sound of footsteps as he trailed after Raichu, "Oh, come on, I was just curious! Give it back!"

/End Chapter/


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

The end of Christmas break was drawing near, but that didn't mean that the vacationers to Cinnabar Island were ready to pack it in just yet. On the contrary, they seemed more than willing to continue enjoying the sun and sprawling across the sand. Horace, especially, took all the time he could to soak up the rays and observe the goings-on of the Pokémon around him. He'd already drafted a paper concerning the behavioural and dietary differences between Fuchsia City Pidgey and their southern relatives, but that was set to the side as he watched a Cinnabar Weedle constructing some kind of nest with its string shot. Beside him, both Raichu and the egg they'd won were sitting on small recliners, both wearing straw hats. Horace has asked Lan to draw a face on the egg with a marker, but both she and Raichu shot this idea down immediately.

Conrad was still nursing a bruised stomach and ego; his ego was hurting because he'd come so close and yet not won the rare egg, and his stomach was a lovely purple from both belly-flopping in the water and having Blastoise land on him after. At least he was able to distract himself from total misery by taunting the others for not making it as far as he had: _especially_ Erica. The amount of gloating he held over her head seemed infinite, until she delivered an open-handed slap to his bruise. After that, he mostly left the party hut early in the morning and returned later in the day, his gloating switching over to how many battles he'd won. Erica, in a rare moment of graciousness, didn't bother pointing out that having a Blastoise on Cinnabar made the battles about as challenging as taking candy from a bowl.

As for Lan, she was enjoying dabbling her toes in the ocean and making sketches of the scenery. Her Meowth was spotted about as often as Conrad, and usually with a scruffed-up appearance that resulted in a trip to the Pokémon Centre. The palm tree which usually shaded her father had also become the resident nesting place for Zubat, which quite enjoyed the warmth of the air but not the direct gaze of the sun. As for Vulpix, the fox was under the opinion that Lan needed its direction in all things, and so it trailed her around ceaselessly and had even taken to bringing her socks in the morning. The problem was that sometimes she wasn't entirely sure they were her socks.

Regardless, vacationing on Cinnabar had relaxed into a peaceful rhythm, and they were all more than a little shocked when Mr. Cage passed out envelopes from FOCUS around the breakfast table.

"We've got a whole flock of birds up on the roof!" He grinned, "Most of your parents forwarded your post. School starts in a few days, doesn't it?"

Lan was the only one who nodded; the rest were already tearing into their letters to see what the Principal had to say. Their report cards had been sent before they left, so that couldn't be it. She was just about to start opening her mail when Conrad stood up with an indignation that had become quite patented to him and him alone, "What is this?"

She thought that maybe, terribly, he'd been kicked out, but Erica was noticeably annoyed as well, and Jericho didn't look particularly pleased either. Worried now, she put aside her usual practice of carefully opening the envelope in favour of a rip, and read over her letter:

_Miss Reeves,_

_Please be advised that the Facility for the Open-minded Correction of Unwieldy Specimens (F.O.C.U.S.) will reopen its doors for students on the fifth of January. Also, due to continued activities of an unfriendly and detrimental nature between Pods, I and the faculty have had no choice but to reconstruct the Pods for the new semester. We believe that the first and foremost priority of all students should be the correction of their Pokémon, not engaging in wars of fashion or hand-to-hand brawls, and have taken the necessary steps to realign the vision of our students to that of the school. _

_In addition, as the number of students at our facility has been reduced to an even number, due to insufficient correctional ability or low grades, the boarding rooms are being consolidated. Please be aware that some, if not all, students will be assigned a new room and roommate._

_Principal Jefferson_

Lan looked up, and saw that the other four all had their eyes on her. Clearly, they had been waiting for her to finish reading before discussing this sudden and rather unpleasant switch.

"What does he think he's going to prove by changing up the rooms?" Conrad's indignation continued, "I've a mind to write him back and tell him that he can shove this letter right up his ass!"

Lysander beamed up at him, "I like you too, Conrad."

"It's probably because a lot of the scheming and bonding took place in rooms." Erica's letter was rolled into a tube, and she tapped it off her chin thoughtfully, "You know Suza was probably plotting as soon as her door closed at the end of the day."

Lan's eyes went wide, "They wouldn't put you _back_ with her, would they?"

Erica snorted, "Not unless they want her to get glue in her conditioner again."

"We could be taking the negative approach to this," Jericho suggested in his quiet way. "After all, he did say that we should be paying more attention to our Pokémon and less to the personal dramas that are springing up."

"Easy for you to say, your roommate was a partying loser!" Conrad was not letting this go so easily. "I understand that the shuffling of the Pods is in order, but the rearranging of rooms is unnecessary. Regardless of scheming and plotting, they're separating us from the friendships we've made on all counts except free time!"

"They could at leave have told us which Pod we're in and what roommate we have," Erica sighed. The last thing she wanted was a repeat of first semester, where she'd gone in not knowing who to expect and wound up with Suza. Half of her was looking forward to a new roommate, however; Ginny was nice, but without the fashion war to distract her she didn't know what they would have to talk about besides her _own_ fashion.

Lan cleared her throat, hating to sound like the brownnoser, but then she recalled that Jericho had already suggested that this change wasn't the end of the world and gained some confidence, "It's true, the principal probably could have handled this better, but he probably has a lot of stress to deal with as well. The more people try to rehabilitate the same Pokémon, the less successful they'll be." She adjusted her glasses, "And besides, we'll still be able to spend our time outside of class together. There's no use treating this like we're all about to be sent to different cities."

"You're right, Lan." Lysander reached over and ruffled her hair, "I say, we take this as an opportunity to make new friends, and put all of that fashion stuff and rivalry behind us. Right?"

It took a lot of expectant smiling and staring to force a 'right' out of Conrad, but eventually he muttered something that might have passed for one. Once that was done, they all finished their breakfast and headed outside. If school was starting soon, they were probably going to have to leave tomorrow morning, making this their last day in the warmth before their winter coats and scarves claimed them again.

"Surfing," Lysander decided their first activity for them, and as none of them had been on a board so far they didn't have the heart to say no again. He led them with triumph to the surf shack, and helped the guy on duty size their boards.

"Man, I'm gunna have to get a kiddie board for you," the surfboarder remarked when he got to Lan. He turned to find one, missing the unimpressed look on her face. Fortunately, the only thing that marked her board as being 'kiddie' were the extra fasteners, which were removable. She would have preferred that they stay on, but Lysander encouraged her into consenting to their removal.

The problem, understandably enough, was that Vulpix wanted to come with her. Lan knelt beside her Pokémon and patted its head, "You're going to have to stay on shore, Vulpix. I'll probably fall of my board, and I don't want you getting soaked."

It barked at her stubbornly, and in the end Ivysaur had to scoop it up with its vines and hold it there while Lan and the others waded into the water.

/

Surfing was an experience, but even more was the change from Cinnabar back to Fuchsia. Swimsuits and short sleeves were buried beneath sweaters and long pants, and even then it was only going to get colder when they went to FOCUS. According to the weather station, the winter was only just getting started, and they would all do well to stock up on mitts and long scarves.

The surf back to Fuchsia didn't exactly make the transition any easier. True, Erica opted to come with them so they now had Gyarados to help carry their things, but Conrad flew back on Fearow to spend a day or two with his parents, and couldn't quite bring himself to leave Blastoise in their care. With warm water below them and snowflakes falling from above, they arrived back in Lan's hometown. Jericho, who hadn't been to the lighthouse before, was swept up by Horace and taken on the grand tour, leaving Lan, Lysander and Erica to sprawl on the couches and continue commiserating on the changes due to take place at the school.

"I wonder what Pod we'll all be in," Erica mused. "That'll be the real change, I think. What if we get placed in Pods that have opposing schedules?"

"The absolute worst thing that could happen," Lysander sighed, "would be for all of us to be put into a different Pod. At least if some of us stayed together, we could plan meeting times around that. Or, you know, if you two get put in a room together."

Lan and Erica blinked, looking at each other with expressions that clearly said they hadn't considered that as an option either. A small smile flitted across Erica's face, "Okay, admittedly, that would be pretty awesome. All our Pokémon know each other, too, so it's not like there would be any adjusting that would have to go on there."

This cheered them up considerably, and for the sake of keeping the mood light none of them thought overly much on the fact that the chances of them getting put together were exactly equal to the chances of them being placed with Suza – baring, of course, if the principal recalled the events of last term and kept them apart. Soon Horace and Jericho were back, and Horace declared that the next day they would be heading up to the Safari Zone to take a look at the effects of winter on certain Pokémon's grazing habits.

/

Nobody was up early the next morning, and most of them were willing to blame it on the long hours of traveling the day before. Still, by noon they were standing in front of the Safari Zone, and after making sure they were all appropriately dressed for trekking through the park the attendant let them in. Horace took the lead, his prize from the obstacle course strapped against his stomach under several layers. The only reason Raichu, or Vulpix for that matter, wasn't with them was the rather strict Safari Zone law of no trainer-owned Pokémon permitted inside the park.

Lan was expecting her father to tromp about 500 feet into the park and then sit down and pull out his notes, having been around him her entire life, and was therefore the only one not surprised when he proceeded to do exactly that. For the first few minutes, the others kept themselves interested by watching what he was observing and speculating on what kind of Pokémon would hatch out of the egg, but then they got bored and started wandering further and further away. Caught between sticking around in case her father needed any sudden sketches, and going after her friends, Lan eventually decided on the latter. The only problem was that by this time, they'd disappeared over the next hill.

Reasoning to herself that they couldn't be _that_ far ahead, Lan trotted off after their footprints, cresting the hill and spotting them a good deal further than originally thought. She took one step, and discovered why. Her assumption had been based on the fact that they'd walked that whole distance; an entire side of a rather large hill being glazed in ice hadn't entered into her equation.

It was times like this that Lan really wished she screamed more often. Instead, her throat locked up and she silently flailed her arms for balance as her feet skidded down the icy slope and took the rest of her with them. For one relieved moment, she thought that she was going to keep her balance and simply slide to a stop at the bottom of the hill. And, to be fair, she was half-right. While she _did_ keep her balance, she came to a rather abrupt stop when someone she didn't know wandered across the bottom of the hill and she rammed straight into him. Lan had never considered herself a strong person, comparisons to her father aside, but apparently momentum did a lot because she took the stranger right off his feet.

For a few seconds she just sort of lay there, sprawled rather inelegantly across his stomach. It wasn't that she was winded, or hurt in any way; she was mortified. Then she felt him shift and he patted her shoulder awkwardly, "Er… are… you okay, miss?"

"I'm fine!" Suddenly she was sitting up ramrod-straight, brushing snow off his jacket as he sat up too. "I'm so _so_ sorry! There was ice, and I was trying to stop, but it—"

Her stammered apology was cut off by him laughing, and he shook his head at her, "Don't worry about it. Really, I should have been paying more attention; you could have been a charging Rhyhorn." He leaned back on one mitten and held out the other, "I'm Simeon. You are?"

"Lan. Lan Reeves." She shook his hand, relief evident in her voice and posture, "I really am sorry. I could at least have _shouted_ or _screamed_ or something, instead of silently hitting you like that."

"Lan." The dazed tone in his voice made her think that perhaps she'd concussed him, but then he tilted his head and gave her a lopsided grin, "Is that short for anything?"

"Erm, no. No, it's not." Lan blinked at him, and then held up three fingers, "How many fingers do you see, Simeon?"

"Three, why?"

"You're acting strangely. You may have a concussion."

Simeon gave her that same grin, "We just met; how do you know what's me acting strange and what's me acting normal?"

Lan puffed up a little at that, and adjusted her glasses, "I wouldn't think that someone with all of their brain functions would talk in such a distracted manner."

"Well maybe you shouldn't be so distracting," he replied.

There were few times in Lan's life where she was reduced to spluttering, but this was one of them. This boy, this _Simeon_, was even more forward than Lysander! She half expected him to lean forward and hug her!

Fortunately, Simeon didn't seem put-off by her gaping at him in a rather fish-like manner, and helped her back to her feet. He even started brushing snow off her coat before she recovered and took a step backwards, but even then he didn't seem to take offense. Instead, he just blinked his bright blue eyes at her and kept right on grinning.

"You're unsettling," Lan told him in no uncertain terms. "Good day."

She turned and started walking in the direction of her friends, only to have him fall into step beside her. Turning a peevish look on him didn't appear to work either, because he was busy looking ahead of them and all she could see of his face was his eyes; from this angle, his scarf and hat covered the rest. He turned his head a little to look at her, and she silently cursed herself for letting him catch her looking.

"So Lan, why are you in the Safari Zone on a winter day like today?"

"I'm here with friends. My daddy is doing research on winterized grazing habits while we explore." She realized after the fact that if she was trying to appear mature she probably should have said 'father' instead, but he didn't look at her any differently, and she was starting to wonder if she wasn't, in fact, walking side-by-side with a rather experienced Ditto. To cover for the awkwardness she was bestowing on herself, she blurted, "What about you?"

"I'm looking for a Pinsir." Simeon winked at her, "Most of them should be trying to hole up in old trees for the winter, and I'm going to lure one out with some safari chow and catch it!"

It had been so long since Lan had spoken with someone her age who _didn't_ attend FOCUS that she couldn't help but remind him, "You're not allowed to have personally-owned Pokémon at the school, remember?"

"The school?" Simeon regarded her curiously, "You mean like… school?"

"I mean the Facility for the Open-minded Correction of Unwieldy Specimens!" She informed him haughtily, "It's _only_ the most prestigious school in Kanto."

"Oh, I know _that_ school." Simeon reached over and ruffled her hair, "But you didn't say that at first, you just said school. I've never been."

If she had been her Vulpix, Lan might have bitten his fingers. As it was she squeaked and ducked away from his hand, readjusting her glasses with rising irritation. When Lysander was affectionate, it was in much the same way as a baby Growlithe; maybe a bit over the line at times, but all platonically meant. Simeon was… she didn't even know what he was. Brightly dressed, that was it.

"I hope a Tauros takes a charge at you," she snapped, patting her hair back into place. "It would serve you right, wearing that bright red jacket."

"I like red," Simeon informed her, inching back to her side as she resumed walking. He ignored the fact that her steps now had a visible stomp to them, "It matches your face."

"It doesn't!"

It did.

"Well anyway," Lan continued. "I wish you luck on finding your Pinsir, but I'm going to catch up with my friends now."

"What friends?" Simeon looked around the field they were in, seeing no one but the two of them, "Are they FOCUS snobs too?"

"They're from FOCUS, yes," Lan frowned at him, "but they're not snobs. And neither am I. You just don't seem to have any knowledge of acceptable social interactions."

"Hey," he shrugged, "you body-slammed me as a hello. If that's not unconventional I don't know what is."

"That was an accident!" Lan blustered, for a moment realizing how Conrad must feel most of the time. "You can't possibly think that I would have the nerve to slide down a hill and knock someone over!"

"Or the coordination?" He supplied.

"Or the… well yes, my coordination is rather poor, that's true." Lan looked up at him with rampant annoyance across her face, "Regardless! I am not a snob."

"Or a prude?"

"Stop that."

"I'm just having a conversation. Is there anything wrong with that?"

"It's not a conversation if you keep putting words in my mouth."

"You can put some in mine, if you'd like," Simeon suggested.

"I wouldn't." Lan raised her nose at him, not caring if it _did_ make her look like a snob, "I don't want anything to do with your mouth."

"That's upsetting; I think if you got to know it you'd change your mind. It's a rather nice mouth."

"I don't care."

"You sure?"

"Positive. Now go look for your Pinsir and leave me alone."

"I can't."

Lan blinked at this, "Why not?"

"Well, because you're a very smart, bookish girl. You must know what happens now." Simeon tugged on his scarf a little, "As soon as we part ways, me to find my new Pokémon and you to look for your friends, the opposite will happen. I'll find your friends, and you'll trip over a Pinsir and have it chase you all the way around the park. Twice."

"That… no, that wouldn't happen. This isn't some fairytale, you know." Lan edged away from him, but didn't go too much farther. It just so happened that over the course of her life, she'd fallen victim to happenstance one too many times for her to completely disregard Simeon's words as ridiculous.

Unfortunately, he picked up on this and promptly looped her arm over his, leading them off down the path after some footprints, "We'll go together! Case closed!"

/

"Guys, look at this!"

Lysander surged on ahead, arriving at the end of the forest path they'd been taking. He'd been this way for the past quarter of an hour, and Erica and Jericho just let him be. While Lysander took a keen interest in all things winterized, it was nothing they hadn't grown up with. Sure enough, his latest discovery turned out to be a branch coated in clear ice, and he poked it, turning to make sure they were looking.

"Look! Isn't it beautiful?"

"Absolutely." Erica called, "Give it a lick!"

Not even pausing to question why he should, Lysander did as he was told. For exactly half a second a joyous look was on his face, then he paused and tried to tug his head away. Several small jerks of the head later, and he was still standing there.

"Heh, dih ihn hunneh."

Erica snickered, and even Jericho started to chuckle. He nudged Erica in the shoulder, "You're terrible."

She looked at him over the same shoulder and smirked, "Story of my life. I guess we'd better go help him."

"In a minute." Jericho took her hand and led her a little ways off the path, leaving Lysander to try and free himself. He was more than a little relieved when Erica followed without protesting or asking why.

Once the flash of Lysander's coat could no longer be seen through the trees they came to a stop. Jericho was barely turned around to face her when Erica stepped close and kissed him, giving his hand a squeeze as she did. It only lasted a second or two, and then she took a step back, regarding him with a tilted head.

"Wh…" He felt colour rising in his cheeks.

"Well that was why you led me back here, wasn't it?" She pointed out.

Jericho's eyes flicked down and to the side, "I was… it wasn't going to be… quite like that. But yes." He glanced back up at her, "That was why."

"Oh." Erica cleared her throat and put her hands behind her back, "Why don't you show me how it _was_ going to be like, then."

He frowned at her, "Now that the mood is all broken up like this?"

"Is it? I don't think it is." Erica tilted her head up a little, "Promise I won't girly-giggle."

Jericho rolled his eyes and raised a hand to her cheek, "You never girly-giggle."

Meanwhile, Lysander had got over his indignation at them leaving him behind, which wasn't saying much as he never got indignant for long, and had a solution for freeing his tongue from the ice. He placed a mittened hand on either side of his tongue, curving them around to form a kind of chamber, and proceeded to pant hot air from his mouth. It took a minute or two of effort, but finally his tongue slid free, and he leapt away from the tree with a triumphant grin. Now, to go find his two lovely friends who left him there to freeze. It wasn't that hard, really. All he had to do was follow the footsteps, and they reliably took him all the way to where…

Erica was kissing Jericho. Or maybe Jericho was the one kissing Erica. Either way, there was kissing involved, and Lysander really couldn't help but let out a two-part whistle. This had the immediate effect of ending all kissing, and while Jericho flushed Erica smirked at Lysander, "Jerk."

"If you two wanted time _alone_ you could have just said so. You didn't have to trick me into sticking my tongue to a tree." Lysander focused on talking to Erica, as Jericho was busy hiding his face behind her head and probably willing his red cheeks to go away.

"I'll keep that in mind for next time," Erica dropped her hands from around Jericho's neck and slid one of them into his hand instead. She held her other hand out for Lysander, and he took it, swinging her arm back and forth, "What now, childish boy?"

"Go back to Lan and Horace, I suppose." Lysander started leading them back towards the path. "And then we can decide how to spend our last night before school."

Erica glanced up at Jericho with a small smirk, and his face went red all over again, "I'm sure we can think up some interesting ideas."

"You _are_ terrible," he muttered.

"You already said that," she pointed out with a teasing tone, "and I'm not going to let you turn it into a 'let's kiss' phrase."

Lysander leaned over, slightly confused but wanting to be included, "You're terrible?"

Erica grinned at him and gave him a quick kiss to the cheek, then looped her arms around both their necks and marched them back towards the Safari entrance.

/

Lan felt tempted to sit down on the snow with her arms crossed. She'd been wandering around the Safari Zone with Simeon for nearly an hour, following footprints that she eventually had to admit didn't belong to her friends. Simeon was keeping his spirits up, but he was a little annoyed at the distinct lack of any Pokémon. He'd known that the winter would drive most of them into hiding, but he couldn't find where those hiding spots _were_. At least they hadn't been able to find one and not the other.

"I suppose I'll just head back to the entrance," Lan grumped. At least she knew where her father would be, and with any luck the others wouldn't be too long in getting back there too.

"I'll come with you," Simeon's tone was regretful. "I suppose I can always try again tomorrow, and no one wants to stay in the Safari Zone when it gets dark."

Lan felt tempted to snap at him that he'd been coming everywhere with her anyway, and turning back to come with her some more wasn't exactly a sacrifice, but he looked disappointed so she held her tongue. Instead, she turned and walked with unerring accuracy towards the entrance.

"Hey," Simeon tagged along beside her, no doubt wondering why she wasn't following the footprints back, "are you sure this is the right way?"

"Of course it is," the statement was made as a simple fact. "I've been coming here with my father since I was five. I know my way around this park." At least as far as the entrance was concerned.

"This is my first time here," Simeon admitted sheepishly. "I did all this planning about Pinsir's habitat and sleep patterns, but I never actually got a map of the park or anything. I guess every genius plan has its flaws, huh?"

"I don't know that I would call waking up a sleeping Pokémon to first throw food at it and then catch it 'genius', but there you are." Lan didn't know what it was about this boy that got her hackles up so much, but she honestly wished he would just go away.

"I don't know that I would call sliding down an icy hill at the exact angle to take a boy off his feet 'accidental', but…"

"Oh would you _stop_ bringing that up? Goodness, I think you might be concussed after all!"

This banter continued past a thicket of trees that appeared to be without footprints, and as soon as Simeon saw this he put a mitten over Lan's mouth and scoped the area. Lan, never much of a self-defense person but wishing she'd stayed in Belle's classes, just stood there and took turns blinking at first him and then the thicket. Finally Simeon let go of her, but that was only to scoop some PokeChow from his coat pocket and begin a creeping walk towards the tree line. Lan stayed a good distance away, fiddling with the hem of her jacket and hoping that he knew what he was doing and wouldn't provoke whatever might be in there to chase them.

Simeon parted some of the branches, and disappeared inside the trees. From where she was standing, Lan heard a few hollow thumps, followed by some scuffling noises and then a rather ominous clack. The scuffling increased, and then everything went silent.

"Simeon?"

Nothing.

"Simeon this isn't funny. I'll leave you here, I will."

Silence.

"Oh poo." Lan could feel her good Samaritan thoughts rising, and hesitantly approached the thicket, her boots stepping in the tracks Simeon had made. When she got to the trees she still couldn't hear a thing, and pushed inside with her breath in her throat.

What had once been undisturbed, pristine white snow was now churned up with dirt and pieces of rotten log. Lan took a small step further, "…Simeon…?"

"BLAH!" He jumped out from a tree off to her right, arms raised and a goofy look on his face. Unfortunately, that didn't stop Lan from shrieking and slapping him across the face. Good thing she was wearing mittens.

"Are you _completely_ immature? Who does that? I thought you could have been hurt!"

"And you came to see if I was still alive, to rescue me!" He grinned, not put off in the least that she'd slapped him, "I caught it."

"I came because I am a nice person and I don't want to see others get in trouble even if they've… what? Oh, that's nice."

"Wanna see?"

"No. You aren't allowed to release owned Pokémon in the park."

"When we get out then?"

"…oh fine." This was muttered with _extreme_ reluctance, but she hadn't seen a Pinsir up close before and no doubt her father would be interested in it. In fact, he'd probably be even _more_ interested in Simeon and his theory of catching Pokémon during winter. She led them back out of the thicket, and they continued on their way.

"You know, Lan…" Simeon started to remark.

"If you even _start_ to say that I'm any type of attractive when angry, I'll make sure I have bricks strapped to my hands next time."

"…okay then. Nice weather, isn't it?"

"It's lovely, yes."

/

Horace was ecstatic. Absolutely over the moon. And why? Because his own little girl, his lovely Lan, had brought a boy home who not only had valuable insights into Pokémon research that he couldn't wait to verify, but also was a _boy_. True, true, Lysander had stayed at their house before, but providence and luck had brought him to their door. As for Conrad and Jericho, they came as a group of friends, along with Erica. Friends were one thing; this _boy_ was quite another. None of the others knew him, and Lan brought him back and did all the introductions. It was a proud day for fathers, yes it was.

As her father stood there looking unusually watery-eyed, Lan introduced Simeon to the others. Erica and Jericho met him easily, but Lysander… was not looking very impressed. Lan blinked at him, but she hadn't just been seeing things. Lysander Cage, the open-minded like-everyone Lysander, was sizing up Simeon like the two of them were Pokémon of the same type, about to fight. It was in his face, in his stance, and in his tone. All the way back to the lighthouse he and Simeon flanked Lan, and appraising glares were sent over her head as they went.

When they got in the door, things didn't get any better. Horace took Simeon on a tour with overflowing enthusiasm, and he insisted that Lan accompany them. As their whole house was one big room, Lysander had to stand on the bottom floor and listen to Horace practically gushing over Simeon the whole way up. Thankfully, Lan put her foot down when Horace offered to show Simeon her room. Doubly thankfully, once the tour had been given Horace insisted on pulling out all his research he'd ever done on Pinsir and dragging Simeon outside to look at it with him. Lan, despite Simeon's bright-eyed look at her, opted to stay inside and brew some hot chocolate. As predicted, Lysander trailed after her as soon as she headed for the kitchen.

"I don't like him."

Even though she'd witnessed the hostile looks and standoffish behavior, Lan still found it strange to be hearing those words coming from Lysander's lips. She tried her best to smile at him as she reached for the cocoa powder, "Well, if it's any consolation, Lysander, he doesn't attend FOCUS and I don't particularly like him either."

He blinked at her, "You… don't?"

"No. I find him quite unusual and off-putting. Why he thinks I'm of any interest at all is beyond me; I expect that he recognized me as my father's daughter and wanted to get to meet daddy. People do that sometimes, you know." Twice in her life that had happened, but she still felt that it was a valid argument. In fact, the more she thought about it, the more she was convinced that Simeon was a Junior Researcher and wanted to run his ideas past her father for approval and guidance. She smiled, "That's probably it. Researchers have a habit of being socially awkward, why didn't I think of it before?"

Lysander frowned at her, "Be that as it may, I don't think he's _just_ interested in your father's research. I don't like it when you tell someone to leave you alone and he doesn't."

"Lysander, you do that all the time."

"But it's different when _I_ do it," he persisted. "I'm just being friendly."

"It's somewhat hypocritical for you to… oh my word, I'm defending him." Lan was so distracted by this realization that she dropped the cocoa. Fortunately the jar was still closed, so Lysander picked it up for her while she recovered. "Well! It's not like he'll be joining our inner circle of friends any time soon, so there. He can go train his Pinsir and leave me alone."

"Lan?" This was called by her father, and he came in the front door tromping snow in a manner that sent Raichu scrambling for a mop and scolding him in PokeSpeak, "Simeon's going to stay the night with us so we can keep discussing theory. Where are those sketches of Scyther that you drew, again?"

From where she was sitting on the couch, Erica observed all the facial expressions and remarked, "This'll be fun."

/

In the end, it wasn't as bad as any of them had thought. Despite Simeon's numerous attempts to pull Lan into the conversation – and it _was_ only _one_ conversation – about Pokémon that he was having with Horace, Lan kept finding excuses to slip away and rejoin the others. First it was to help with dinner, then to clean up the dishes, and after that they needed a fourth for a round of cards. That turned into ten rounds of cards, at her insistence.

When it was time to go to bed, they were presented with another problem. Two couches, a double bed, and Lan's single were the only sleeping surfaces available in the house. With Horace still yammering at Simeon, who had somewhat lost his enthusiasm for talking about Pinsir by this point, Lan and Erica retreated up to her room. After some spatial thinking, they determined that they could, in fact, both fit in Lan's bed if they slept back-to-back. Jericho and Lysander agreed to share the double bed the next landing down, leaving Simeon with no choice but to take the other couch and continue to listen to Horace's theories until such time as the big man fell asleep.

Once their teeth were scrubbed and they were in bed, Lan spoke over her shoulder at Erica, "So, we're going back tomorrow."

"We are," Erica agreed.

"It's going to be strange, not having you in my classes."

"Oh, we don't know that for sure," Erica reached behind her and patted Lan's shoulder. "For all we know, we'll be put into a new Pod together, and we could be roommates. Then that would make the whole shuffle _better_, wouldn't it?"

Lan didn't think that was going to be the case, but Erica usually tended towards pessimism and if she was choosing to be optimistic about this, so would Lan, "That would be so wonderful, if we all stayed together." She was silent for a minute or two, and then asked, "Erica?"

"Mmhmm?" The reply was sleepy this time.

"Did you notice that Jericho was looking at you a lot tonight?"

For a few seconds she thought Erica had gone to sleep on her, but then the other girl replied, "Just as much as Simeon was looking at you."

And _that_ shut Lan up and gave her a lot to think about until she fell asleep herself.

/\\\End Chapter/\\\


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Lan and Erica were the first two up the next morning, but not because they wanted to be. A messenger-Pidgey arrived that obviously hadn't been given the memo that the Fuchsia post office was no longer Lan's bedroom, and Meowth proceeded to take a yowling leap at it and rampage around the small room. No one emerged from the scuffle without scratches, including Meowth, and Lan hoped that the foul awakening wouldn't be an indication of how the rest of the day would go.

After securing Meowth back in its Pokeball, Lan followed Erica through the trapdoor and down into the main room. Somewhat incredibly, all the noise hadn't managed to wake up any of the boys. Lan was prepared to let them sleep, but Erica got a mischievous look on her face and crept down the stairs to where Lysander and Jericho were sharing the bed. 'Sharing' was a term that had to be used very loosely, because Lysander was monopolizing all but two feet of it, and Jericho was sleeping on his side, one of his arms hanging over the edge.

Lan watched, a strange mix of excitement and nerves going through her, as Erica knelt in front of Jericho. After softly blowing air across his face, Erica half-sung his name in a quiet, melodious tone. A small smile appeared on his face, but when he opened his eyes and saw her sitting right in front of him he gave a startled yelp and jerked backwards, rolling onto Lysander's hand and one of the Exeggcute. Protests abounded, sheets were flung everywhere, and Wartortle fell out of the bed, spinning on its back and withdrawing into its shell after a sleepy yawn.

"Good morning!" Erica snickered, picking up Wartortle and setting it back on the bed with the rest of them, "Have a nice sleep?"

Lysander's happy-but-sleepy face poked up from the mess of sheets, "Did. That was a fun way to wake up; better than an alarm clock, I think."

When there was no answer from Jericho, Lysander poked the sheets, coming into contact with rib. This irritated an answer out of his bedbuddy, "Yes, lovely. Don't do that again."

Erica rolled her eyes and turned back to Lan, "I guess we should see about breakfast? Or do we want to wait until we get to FOCUS… they might have some kind of welcome-back barbecue?"

Lan was busy peering down at the two sleepers on the bottom floor, thinking to herself that she would have to wake her father before she left. He'd most probably come after her and into the school if she didn't say goodbye before she went, but waking him up meant waking up Simeon too, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to have him pestering her again. Her problem solved itself even as she stood there, though it was unfortunately in the negative way. Simeon woke up, and as soon as he saw her staring at him he grinned and waved. This resulted in her snubbing him instantly.

/

They were supposed to be back at the school and settled for noon, so by the time ten o'clock rolled around everyone was ready to go. It seemed strange, considering all the advance-planning and luggage that had gone into the trip last semester. This time, most of Lan's things were already at the school, albeit packed and sitting in her new room. She didn't have to walk this time, either; Erica had her Charizard, and her father had splurged and rented a carrier-Pidgeot.

"You're going to have a _wonderful_ time," Horace tearfully exclaimed, sweeping Lan into a bear-hug as if this were her first term and not her last. "Just _think_ of all those new Pokémon, waiting for you to come and help them. Oh, I'm so proud!" His voice cracked on that last word, successfully embarrassing everyone present.

When he finally set her down, Lan adjusted her glasses and pulled on her mittens, "I'll visit more this term, daddy, I promise. With any luck I'll be assigned a flying Pokémon, so you won't have to rent me one."

Horace's lip was wobbling, "My little baby girl is growing up!"

Lan beamed at him, her eyes going misty, but the moment was somewhat spoiled by her peripheral vision picking up the look that Simeon was giving her at Horace's words. She thought of Erica's observation from the previous night, and snubbed him again. Unfortunately, he didn't seem to take rejection at all. He just ignored it.

"Come on, Lan!" Lysander hopped up onto Pidgeot's back, and Lan didn't hesitate in bustling over and letting him pull her up behind him. A few seconds later they were in the air, and Horace's big frame was reduced to a distant speck before disappearing.

"I still don't like him," Lysander tossed back over his shoulder.

"I still don't either!" was Lan's reply.

/

More than once on the way to FOCUS, Lysander had needed to circle Pidgeot. It was nobody's fault that the bird was meant for speed, while Charizard was meant for power, and Pidgeot didn't seem to mind. That was fortunate, because Lan had heard that many delivery Pidgeot didn't stop or swerve for anything, and were known to be hostile if told to veer from their destination.

Finally they arrived, and there was already a crowd of students milling around outdoors. Despite the heavier snow on the ground, it was a beautiful sunny day, and it was obvious that the organizers of the school wanted to take advantage of it before foul weather forced them all inside again. How the students were expected to train their new Pokémon predominantly indoors was something Lan wasn't sure about, but she concluded that there was going to be a lot of use of the battle arenas this term for non-battle activities.

A whistle went up as they flew over the school, and they looked down to see Coach Belle waving his arms at them and directing them to a cleared patch of asphalt clearly meant to be a landing pad. Charizard landed first, and Pidgeot gracefully followed after. Once they were safely on the ground, Pidgeot crowed and took flight, and Erica summoned Charizard back into its Pokeball. Time to see some changes.

/

Scratch that. Time to go find the booth that would tell them where to go to see the changes. It wasn't particularly well-marked, possibly because the teachers wanted the students to enjoy the barbecue and the welcome-back speeches before completely freaking out over their changes. Still, they found it, and the teacher behind the desk handed over their new keys and information readily enough.

Paper went flying as they tore into their envelopes to look for their new roommates and Pod information. Lysander was the first to get his envelope open, but the look on his face was clearly a confused one, "Brown?"

Erica was next, "Orange? Have they changed all the colours as well as the Pods?"

Lan glanced at her new Pod colour—Purple—but her attention was more on the name of her new roommate: Erica Hunter. She stared at the page, and then gave an excited cheer and hugged Erica, her glasses going askew on her face. It took Erica another second to see what Lan was excited about, but she hugged her back when she did.

"We really were getting worked up about nothing," Lan remarked. "Even if we aren't in the same Pod."

"We are," Jericho remarked to Lysander. "But I don't know the boy I'm rooming with."

Lysander looked at his sheet, glanced at Lan, looked back at his sheet, and cleared his throat, "My roommate is Ellison."

Even though she hadn't spared the closed-off boy a thought over the Christmas break, Lan's face grew a healthy blush. It was mostly from the look Lysander was giving her, true, but at the same time she wondered if Ellison had lost any of the surliness towards her from last term. She didn't think it likely.

/

Suza Bishop was livid. Absolutely, undeniably livid. And she intended to make sure that everyone in the vicinity knew it. Not only was she angry at the dissolving of the Blue Pod and being split up from her best roommate ever, but she'd been stuck with the absolute worst girl in the entire school: Roselyn Hyde. _Why_ the principal thought that pairing the two of them together would end in anything other than complete sabotage and bitter tears, she had no idea, but she intended to make him swap her out before the day was through.

Unfortunately, as if sensing the anger that many of the students would bear him, Principal Jefferson was nowhere to be found. Once all of the food had been distributed, he appeared on the stage and made his speech about stepping up the training, refocusing the school, blah blah blah, but Suza was too busy wriggling her way through the crowd to the front to listen much. Her intent was to intercept him before he could leave, but at the end of his speech he strode off with long strides that she, stuck in a crowd of inconsiderate morons who wouldn't move, couldn't follow fast enough.

"This is _so _not _fair_!" Suza stomped her foot in irritation, and turned to go back to the registration booth to complain to them, only to almost bump right into Ellison. He was still creepy, and he didn't say anything at first, just looked at her. Not particularly in the mood to giggle and twirl her hair right now, Suza snapped, "What do you want?"

He actually _smiled_ at her, which was disturbing simply because he never did that, "I got you something for Christmas."

"Did… oh." Suza could never say no to a gift, "What is it?"

Ellison held out the box for her, and she tore into it immediately. When she opened the lid, she blinked. A necklace? That wasn't… who gave girls they barely knew a necklace? Creepy boys, that's who. But Suza batted her lashes at him, her equilibrium recovered in the face of an expensive gift, "Thank you, Ellison. Will you help me put it on?"

"I… can't you get someone else to?"

She rolled her eyes at him, "Fine, I will. Ooooh, there's Lysander. Yoohoo! Lysander!" Completely oblivious to the sudden foul look on Ellison's face, she waved at the Cinnabar boy and jogged across the snow-covered ground to where he and a few of the other former-Greens were standing. Ignoring Lan and Erica completely, Suza gave Lysander a hug and beamed up at him, "Oh I _do_ hope you had a wonderful Christmas! Will you help me put on a necklace?"

Lysander blinked down at her, "I… suppose so. Have you seen Ellison?"

Suza rolled her eyes, "He's probably following me. He does that. Why?" As she spoke, she handed him the necklace and turned her back to him, lifting her hair so he could clip it on.

"He's my new roommate." Lysander explained, sliding the necklace around her neck and clipping it closed without difficulty, "I thought we could eat lunch together or something. You know, get to know one another better."

Suza got over her shock by forcing out a giggle, which gradually became genuine, "Are you serious? You two are nothing alike!"

"Neither are we." This unimpressed observation came from off to the side, and Roselyn glared at Suza, "I don't know what Jefferson thinks he's doing, matching us together."

Suza returned the glare with equal distaste, "Just stay away from my side and my things. I'm going to appeal this as soon as I can corner him."

"Well at least in this, we're agreed," this statement actually unsettled her. To get over it, Roselyn turned to Erica and did a quick assessment of her outfit, "I have to say, Erica, I'm impressed. I thought Cinnabar would be a one-shot kind of thing."

Erica shrugged, the action deliberately exaggerated to wrinkle up her coat, "Looks like it doesn't matter though, what with White and Blue being dissolved."

This statement had an interesting effect on the group; everyone started looking around and wondering who was where. Lan found herself hoping with every fiber of her being that Suza wasn't in her Pod. She found herself glancing at Ellison, who was completely busy glaring at Lysander, who was trying to get Suza to stop leaning against him without having her fall flat on her back.

"Well, I'm in Purple," Lan put out.

From the disapproving frown that flashed on to Ellison's face, Lan guessed that he was in the same Pod as her. She didn't know whether to be excited or not, but went with excited when Suza giggled, "I'm in Pink. Isn't that the greatest colour ever?"

"Orange is better," Roselyn immediately returned.

The two girls went back to glaring at each other, and Erica subtly nudged Lan with her shoulder and suggested, "Let's go check out our room and get settled. We get new Pokémon tomorrow."

/

"Pink?" Conrad was not amused. He'd just barely reconciled himself to the fact that he would be split up from his friends and not sharing a room with Lysander, and now, the cherry on the cake, he was in a girly-coloured group. He dropped himself down onto the nearest bench, muttering darkly and thinking of all the ways he could try to get out of being in Pink. He didn't even know what the other colours were, but he doubted that all of them could be so clearly feminine.

He glared down at his information sheet, at the name of his new roommate, and felt the angry glare fade to a more confused one: Douglass Pike. He'd never heard of the boy before, and in a school of only one hundred students that was unusual. It was strange, but just like so many other students across the campus, the first question he planned on asking his new roommate was which Pod he'd been in before the break.

Eventually his brain realized that sitting on a cold bench had very nearly frozen his hind end, and he got up to go find his room. This semester had better be more productive for him than the last one; it could hardly be any worse.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

"What do you mean we have to give up our Pokémon?"

This indignant bluster was made by Conrad, but it was what they were all feeling. After a day of classes, they'd arrived at the usual building to receive their new Pokémon and were greeted with the rather shocking statement that if they wished to continue in this semester's rehabilitation, they would have to give up the three Pokémon they'd worked with the previous semester. Lan felt her hand hover protectively over the three Pokèballs at her side. She'd only just established a true connection with Vulpix; was she really going to have to make the fox stay in its ball for the next four months?

"Look kid, I don't make the rules. I just reinforce them." The teacher in charge of letting them through into the next room rubbed his temples. Clearly, he'd had to deal with just this sort of outburst a lot today, "Principal Jefferson wants to keep your attention on rehabilitation. That means taking away all the Pokémon you have that are battle-ready. With no battles to distract you, you can focus more on your new projects."

"But what if they think we're abandoning them?" Lan readjusted her glasses, "Surely that will only make them backslide if they have to stay in their Pokèballs for all that time?"

The teacher looked at her for a wordless moment, and then repeated, "I don't make the rules. I just reinforce them."

"Well what if we don't want to?" Conrad challenged, "What if we refuse to give up our Pokémon?"

By the look on the teacher's face, it was clear that he'd been asked _this_ question many times as well, "Then you spend the semester not getting any new Pokémon to rehabilitate, and at the end of the year since you won't have your mandatory six, you'll have to give back the ones you've worked with anyway."

"So we don't have a choice?" Conrad gritted.

"You don't," the teacher concurred. "If you like, you can take a moment to say goodbye to them. I'm sure they'll understand."

Lysander held up the Pokèball containing Exeggcute, considering it, "I'm sure they won't. Can't we just send the Pokémon back to our families?"

"The problem with that is, if you flunk out this semester, how are we supposed to get them back? No, you have to hand them in for us to look after."

Suddenly the day didn't seem quite so exciting, and the group tromped back outside to say their goodbyes. Lan wondered if they were going to do so as a group, but it appeared the others were all branching off to talk to their Pokémon in private. She was more than a little relieved by this, and wandered for a few minutes before deciding she would rather tell her Pokémon one at a time. She liked to think it was so they could each have some private time with her before being shut into their Pokèballs, but ended up being honest with herself and admitted it was also so Vulpix and Meowth wouldn't gang up and attack her.

Meowth was the first she called out, and it regarded her with disdain, but at least she'd managed to stop it from outright attacking her whenever it was released. Once it saw that there were no other Pokémon in the area, and therefore no battles to be had, its expression changed to slight confusion. No doubt it was wondering why they were outside in the snow with nothing to do. Having the personality it did, however, meant that it didn't want to ask Lan why exactly it was out of its ball.

"Meowth." As much as she would probably regret it in a few seconds, Lan knelt down to be on the Pokémon's level, "Even though you've cost me a small fortune in new socks, you know that I've liked getting to know you."

'Loved' was a bit of a strong word, and Meowth knew it. Still, there was a great deal of suspicion that suddenly appeared on its face. Lan swallowed nervously and continued, "The thing is, the only way I can keep you, Vulpix and Zubat at the end of the year is to help three more Pokémon. If I don't do that, I have to give all of you back. And the professors have just told us that if we want to get those three more Pokémon, we have to give the three we have to them to hold on to. Do you know what I'm saying?"

It blinked at her, then promptly savaged the hem of her pants, trying to get at her socks.

"Ow! Stop it, I'm trying to have a meaningful goodbye!" Lan pulled her legs away and reached for her Meowth, grabbing it by the scruff. It hissed at her, but didn't try to claw further. A shake was given to the cat Pokémon just for good measure, "I'm saying that I _want_ to keep you, Meowth! The only way for me to stay your trainer is for the teachers to look after you for four months."

It still looked completely unimpressed, and its face stayed that way until she summoned it back into its Pokèball. The meeting hadn't gone as she'd hoped it would, but at least now Meowth would know why she wasn't summoning it out for such a long time. The next Pokémon she called out was Zubat, which zipped around her head for a few times before settling on her shoulder and squeaking at her.

Lan smiled, but reached up and picked it up, holding the tiny Pokémon in front of her, "Zubat, I have to tell you something about school."

The bat Pokémon didn't have any eyes, so it was harder for Lan to tell what it was thinking, but from the way it stilled in her hand she could tell it was suddenly nervous. It sent a hesitant squeak her way, and rubbed its head against her knuckle. She patted its head, "I just found out that I'm not allowed to have any of my Pokémon from first semester with me for second semester. I have to give you back to the teachers for four months if I want to graduate and be able to keep you."

Zubat stayed quiet for a few seconds, but then squeaked in a more positive way and gave her a few encouraging licks to the hand. Lan let go of it, and it fluttered up to her face and rubbed cheeks with her. She spent a minute or two heaping a last dose of attention on it, seeing as it was being more understanding and not trying to ruin her clothes, and then called it back into its Pokèball.

She picked up Vulpix's Pokèball, staring at it for long seconds before she released Vulpix. This was her first Pokémon, and they'd been through a lot together. It didn't seem fair that she'd have to be apart from it for months, especially when she considered how close they'd grown while vacationing in Cinnabar. When the fox Pokémon emerged, Lan didn't try to give it a speech. She just sat on the pathway, careless of the thin layer of snow coating it, and held out her arms. Vulpix trotted over and into them, snuggling in and heating up its body just a little to ward off the cold.

Lan could feel her eyes watering, but wasn't aware she was actually crying until Vulpix reached up and licked a tear off her cheek. It gave a concerned whine, and she finally told it what she'd told the others, "I have to give you back for four months if I want to graduate and keep you."

It wasn't fair. It really wasn't. She hugged Vulpix closer, and it continued to snuggle with her. She was a little surprised it hadn't given any stronger reaction than that, and she suddenly wondered if someone had attempted to rehabilitate Vulpix before. What would it be like, she wondered, to have formed a bond with your trainer and be told they'd come back for you, and then the next time you were summoned from your ball it was for someone completely different?

Eventually she heard someone calling her, and Vulpix removed her glasses with its teeth so she could wipe her eyes dry. She took the glasses back with a small smile of thanks, and turned to see Lysander waiting for her. A last hug was given to her Vulpix, and she whispered, "I _am_ getting you back at the end of the semester. I _promise_."

Vulpix gave a soft yip, and hopped from her arms to the path, waiting to be called back into its ball. Lan held the ball out, and watched her favourite Pokémon dissolve into the red energy and get sucked inside. By the time she'd stood up and dusted off her pants, Lysander had walked over. Lan sent a small smile his way, "Did yours understand?"

He nodded, "Exeggcute said it'd be an ideal time for them to review your dad's notes, so they'll have questions ready for next time, and Sandslash knows the next time it comes out Conrad will own it. Staryu needed some persuading. Yours?"

"Vulpix and Zubat were okay." Lan glanced down at Meowth's Pokèball, "Meowth had a last-minute backslide and tried to ruin my socks."

"At least that's something you can look forward to this semester," he suggested. "Intact socks."

Lan felt her smile grow a little more. She took his hand, and the two of them walked back towards the Pokèball building. Erica and Conrad were already there, and Conrad was nodding at something Erica was saying.

When Erica saw Lan and Lysander approach, she turned and repeated her idea, "I was just saying that I don't think we should hand in our Pokémon and get our new ones right away. We're all pretty down about saying goodbye to them, and our new Pokémon don't deserve to meet us while we're still upset."

Lan blinked, and then nodded, "That sounds like a good idea. Should we give up our Pokémon and then spend an hour or two without any?" Her throat choked a little on the idea of giving up her three Pokémon, but it was comforting that everyone was in the same boat and no one wanted to be there.

No one answered her, not verbally, but they all turned toward the building and went inside. There were still a lot of students protesting, and just as many huddling in groups and commiserating about essentially starting over. It seemed like everyone was taking comfort in the friendships they'd built, but at the same time they were choosing to say their goodbyes in private.

When the group reached the table, the teacher looked up at them with a strained smile, "Here to hand in your Fall PokeProjects?"

"We are." Conrad went first, and Lan admired the confidence and commitment in his voice. He really was sure of himself when his mind was made up. He took the three Pokèballs from his belt and set them on the table, but kept his hand over them while he asked, "How are you going to keep track of whose Pokémon are whose?"

"Each of you has a student account set up on Bill's P.C. Network. Currently, those accounts can only be accessed by members of staff. Once you graduate, you'll receive the pass code for your account. You can recollect your Pokémon then."

Lan had no idea what Bill's P.C. Network was, and while Conrad signed over his Pokémon Erica filled her in, "It's the fastest and most reliable Pokémon storage system in Kanto. It documents your Pokémon and sends it to some kind of resort, where it can be outside instead of crammed in a ball and waiting for you. The Network used to be free, but so many people uploaded their Pokémon and left them that there was mass overcrowding. It's a pretty pricy Network to join, now."

"How long do we get it for?" Lan was intrigued. While she didn't think she'd ever own more than six Pokémon, sharing her account with her father would definitely help him in his research. It would also prevent another Raichu case.

Erica shrugged, but the teacher overheard her question and spoke up, "All graduated students of FOCUS keep their Network membership for one year. FOCUS will continue to pay for your account if you sign up for volunteer activities or help locate and bring in new troubled Pokémon."

That explained where the school kept finding all of these troubled Pokémon to help; Lan had always wondered about that. She was next in line, and handed over her Pokémon with more relief than she thought she would. The fact that they'd be spending the next four months at a resort, instead of locked in their Pokèball and hoping their trainer succeeded with a second batch of PokeProjects, was an enormous weight off her shoulders.

The teacher was surprised when all four of them declined immediately going through the doors and picking their next Pokémon, but shrugged and turned to assist the next student in line, telling them that the building would close in two hours. It didn't give them a lot of time to head to the cafeteria and share their favourite Pokémon stories, but it was enough.

/

"I am _so_ completely ready for this!" Suza walked out the doors of the PokeProject building, holding her new Pokèball in her hands, "Last semester I got two fat Pokémon I'd never pick on my own, and the only _cute_ one ran away every time I tried to tie a bow on it!"

This semester, she was sure, was going to be different. It was true, by the end of the semester her Pokémon had grown on her, and Machop was a strong fighter considering it had started the school year as a sphere, but Suza didn't particularly _want_ strong Pokémon. She wanted ones that were cute, that she could dress in outfits and gush over with her other friends. To her, it didn't matter that all the Pod colours had switched around; all of the former-Blues still sat together at lunch, and still gossiped about the lack of fashion sense present in the rest of the school.

"You're undeniably the shallowest girl I've ever met." Jericho kept walking, not shortening his strides. When Suza hustled to keep up he snapped, "Stop following me."

"You really are more attractive when you don't talk," Suza pointed out with a sickeningly-sweet giggle. "You're the only boy around; what if I need protection from my new Pokémon?"

"Ellison's right there." Jericho jabbed his thumb over his shoulder to where Ellison was just exiting the building.

From the way the boy's hatted head moved around Suza could tell he was looking for her, and she ducked a little closer to Jericho, hoping to blend in, "No thanks. He creeps me out."

"Funny how that is," Jericho attempted to take his arm back from her clinging fingers, but she held fast. Frustrated now, he reminded her, "Do you think I forgot what you did to Lan last semester? _And_ how you tried to get me in trouble for it? I don't like you, Suza."

"Well do _you_ think I don't remember those _bruises_ you left on my arms from grabbing me? They lasted a week and a half, you know." She held on a little tighter, "Forgive and forget, I always say."

"Get. Off."

"Suza!" Roselyn ignored the panicked look on her roommate's face as she strode over, irritation on her face and in her voice, "There were half-curled brown hairs all over my straightener this morning. You wouldn't happen to _know_ about that, would you?"

"Me?" Suza attempted another giggle, but her attention was mostly on Ellison, who was heading their way. She looped an arm through Roselyn's, her other hand still gripping the sleeve of Jericho's coat, and she steered them for the path through the field, "I'm sure we can talk about this as we walk. Let's go find out what our new PokeProjects are!"

/

From where they were sitting in the cafeteria, Lan leaned back in her seat and looked out the window with a frown. Conrad was in the middle of recounting a victory he'd had with Fearow while on Cinnabar and not to be distracted, but Lysander tapped his foot off Lan's and asked, "What is it?"

"It's strange," Lan went back to sitting normally, shaking her head at herself, "I almost thought I saw Jericho, Suza, and Roselyn walking together."

Erica also stopped paying attention to Conrad in favour of hearing Lan's news, "Are you serious? What do those three have in common?"

Lan shrugged, "I must have imagined it." She went to say something further, but Erica was craning her neck to look out the window. Remembering how Jericho had acted around Erica for the last few days of their vacation, and that Suza liked to take places in relationships whenever she could, Lan could see why Erica was so interested.

Eventually Conrad realized he was being ignored, and aimed a pointed sniff in their direction, "Well, maybe if you three did some more battling this conversation wouldn't be so one-sided."

Lan gave him an apologetic smile, "Sorry Conrad. I suppose it's time for us to head back."

"This semester is going to be markedly different than last time." Conrad didn't seem overly bothered about being ignored. Instead, he immediately launched into a monologue about how the Pokémon he received this time around were going to be as in-tune with his goals and personality as Erica's group from last semester was with her. As they approached the building for the second time and went inside, he concluded with, "I may even select a dragon Pokémon. Now _that_ would make my entire year."

The building was empty of all other students, and only one staff member was left at the desks. He waved them over when he saw them, "Come on, come on. You've already handed in your projects from last term, have you? Good, go through."

Even though they'd only delayed a little while between saying goodbye to their Pokémon and getting their next one, Lan felt better. It was less like shoving the old away for the new, which she had a feeling more than one student had done. Suza came to mind immediately. When she was in front of the giant bin of Pokèballs once again, Lan let out a small sigh. If Suza hadn't been watching last semester and felt in the mood to mess with Lan's plans, she'd be going for the Pokèball that had ended up containing a terrified Growlithe right now. As it was, she was back to choosing one from hundreds.

"What gets me," Conrad was saying to anyone who cared to listen, "is how they think that any trainer can bond with and fix any Pokémon. Some of us just have different strengths. You'd think they'd sort the Pokémon out just a _little bit more_."

"I don't like it either, Conrad." Erica was standing in the middle of the bin, having jumped in as per usual, and was rummaging away with no particular indicators in mind, "But if we got to pick and choose, we might as well sign up for the League instead."

"Which I'll be doing as soon as I graduate," he pointed out. He stood up with a particularly shiny Pokèball, and adjusted his cap, "This one. I'll meet you outside."

"Waiting wouldn't kill you," Erica muttered, but he was already heading for the doors. She snatched a ball at random and waded through the rest, climbing out of the bin next to Lan, "So? Are your sleuthing skills pointing you at a specific ball?"

"No." Lan pushed her glasses up and continued looking, "I know I should probably just grab one like you do, but I keep thinking that if I search enough, I'll find a special one."

Erica glanced over at Lysander, who'd selected a ball and was waiting patiently for them to finish. She smiled back at Lan and took her friend's wrist, placing the ball she'd grabbed in it, "There's your special one. Picked out by a friend; how could it be bad?"

Without waiting for Lan to protest and try to give it back, Erica scooped up another ball and turned for the exit, "Come on. Let's make sure Conrad doesn't try to open his by himself and have some kind of accident."

Lan stared down at the ball in her hand, then slowly raised her other hand to cup it with both. Her stomach twisted around a little, and she found herself wishing both that the Pokémon inside was wonderful, and that it wasn't one Erica wanted. If it were, she'd feel terrible about getting it instead, regardless of the fact that it was a gift. She followed Erica and Lysander outside, still holding the Pokèball like she would an egg.

Usually they'd head out into the field to see what their new Pokémon were, but with snow heaping the ground and earlier sunsets than last semester they decided to go inside to one of the arenas instead. Conrad, for all that he'd plowed out the doors ahead of them, had waited for his friends to catch up. As soon they'd decided where to release their Pokémon, however, he was off, taking long strides toward one of the smaller arenas.

He was barely inside the arena before tossing his Pokèball, ignoring the small group of students at the far end. Lan felt tempted to point out that he wasn't wearing his hat, as he'd done for all three Pokémon from the previous semester, but it was too late to say so now. The red energy of the Pokèball resolved into a Poliwrath. The Pokémon looked around, taking in its surroundings, and as soon as it realized where it was it crossed its arms and sat down. The frog Pokémon didn't have lips, but if it did Lan was sure it would be pouting.

Conrad scratched his head, some small part of him realizing his hat was still in his backpack, "What's wrong with it?"

The Poliwrath sent a glare his way, clearly not impressed with its trainer thinking something was in any way wrong. It raised the section of its head with nostrils, in a clear snubbing gesture. Conrad crossed his own arms, his brows lowering, "Is my Pokémon throwing a snit?"

"Maybe." Erica threw her Pokèball onto the arena floor, "I'm sure some Pokémon go through life being spoiled. At least this one isn't running toward or away from you."

Conrad frowned, watching as the energy from her Pokèball resolved into a Butterfree, "Har dee har. At least I don't have to worry about being bear-hugged to death this semester."

"Admit it; you loved it." Erica ducked as her Butterfree swooped overhead, and was about to call to it when a fine dusting of powder started to fall around her. She held her hands up to catch the dust, a small frown on her face, and even as she realized what was happening and tried to get out of the shower, her eyes rolled back in her head and she fell to the floor. The other two weren't close enough to try and catch her, and Conrad had no particular wish to get hit with the Butterfree's attack too.

Once the dust settled, he leaned down and picked up Butterfree's ball, summoning it back from its perch in the arena's rafters. Apparently its hostility extended only to its trainer, as it hadn't tried to catch anyone else in the rain of powder. Lan and Lysander, meanwhile, ran to Erica's side and checked her over. Lan put a hand against her friend's cheek, "What do you think it used?"

Lysander slipped an arm under Erica's upper back and lifted her, listening to her breathing, "I think she's just sleeping. Should we take her to the school nurse?"

Lan nodded, "Just to be safe."

"I'll take her." They both looked up at Conrad in surprise, but he got out of looking back at them by returning his Poliwrath to its Pokèball, "I've already seen my Pokémon. Besides, I should have… I'll just take her, okay?" He didn't want to say he should have pulled her out of the dust before it settled, or at the least caught her to save her knees and shoulder the bruises. It was just a little too much like an apology, and there were too many people around.

Lan smiled, some part of her understanding what Conrad meant. As for Lysander, he stood with Erica in his arms, holding her out for Conrad to take, "You've carried people before, right?"

Conrad snorted, "I'm strong enough to carry her without dropping her, if that's what you mean."

It wasn't what Lysander meant, but he let Conrad take Erica anyway, a critical eye out to make sure his friend was doing it right. As Conrad walked off, muttering something about no one trusting him with anything, Lysander sighed, "I'll bet Erica wishes she still had her old Pokémon."

For a second, Lan thought he was talking about the Pokèball that her friend had given her, the one she still held as if it might break at any moment. Then she realized that she was being silly, and of course he was referring to her Pokémon from last semester. Though really, she didn't see how any of the three would be able to stop the immediate attack Erica's Butterfree had launched. Perhaps one of them would have pushed Erica out of the way and taken the hit for her.

Realizing that Lysander was looking at her, Lan asked, "What?"

"You're always the last one to see what your Pokémon is. You go next."

"That's… that's not technically true…" Lan thought about arguing the point, but left it alone. Instead, she gave the Pokèball as dramatic a throw as she was able, calling, "Come on out, Pokémon!"

It didn't take long for the energy to resolve, and when it did Lan was looking at a Persian. As the big cat yawned and began grooming itself, Lan tried not to let any hint of disappointment show on her face. She was sure that this Pokémon would be nothing like her Meowth, but it would be strange to have both a Meowth and a Persian; especially if and when Meowth evolved, at which point she'd have two of the same Pokémon. Hopefully they weren't the same in personality too.

"Hey there." Lan crouched down, holding out her hand toward her newest PokeProject. Remembering a trick Jericho had used over Christmas break to get Meowth to come over to him, Lan rubbed the pad of her thumb against the pads of her other fingers. Sure enough, her Persian barely looked at her hand before getting up with a slight meow and sauntering toward her. Lan refused to be intimidated by memories of past savage cats, and as soon as Persian reached her it bumped her hand with its head and rubbed its back against her, clearly asking for scratches. The instant Lan began to give them, the purring started.

Lysander watched the delight spread across Lan's face with a smile. It was about time she got a friendly Pokémon she could cuddle. Sure, she'd later find out why it had to be rehabilitated, but for now she could just enjoy herself. Stepping a few feet away, he released his own PokeProject, and promptly threw himself to the side as his new Dodrio tried to peck him in the face. Just as it was Lan's turn to get a nice Pokémon, it was apparently his turn to get an aggressive one. And the teachers said the process was randomized.

/\End/\


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

When Lan woke up the next morning, she thought one of the other student's rock Pokémon had triggered an earthquake under the school, and chunks of ceiling were falling. What else could explain the weight on her chest, or the rumbling noise that even now filled her ears? Then she opened her eyes and saw the cream-coloured fur of her Persian, and remembered that she'd actually received an affectionate PokeProject that weighed more than ten ounces.

She didn't think she moved at all, but with a slight trill in its purr Persian woke up, and as soon as it saw Lan looking at it the purring got louder and it started to knead her through the blanket.

"You're so cute, but ow." Lan tried to sit up, but she didn't have the strength to shove her cat away. In a rather submissive gesture, she gave up trying and just let her Persian smother her with affection.

As it did, Lan looked across the room at Erica, who'd slept through the night. Nurse Joy had assured Conrad that Erica would wake up and be perfectly fine today, and he'd relayed that message to Lan and Lysander. Butterfree hadn't been out of its ball since yesterday's mishap, and Lan knew that Erica would disapprove. It was just too bad that they hadn't been allowed to keep their Pokémon from the previous semester; Ivysaur and Charizard would have had no problem getting Butterfree in line.

Even as she thought it, Lan shook her head. The point of this school wasn't to have your Pokémon intimidate each other into submission. It was for the student to learn how to connect with Pokémon and coax them into a friendly and workable disposition. Or at least to keep them from ruining the entirety of one's sock collection.

Finally Persian got up and stretched, wiggling its front toes while sticking its rear in the air. Then it gave Lan a head-butt to her chin and hopped off the bed, sauntering over to the door. Lan sat up and watched, just in case Persian's unruly behaviour presented itself, but all the cat did was sit down and look from her to the door handle.

"Erica was right; it's a lot easier to get started on rehabilitation when you know what it is you're rehabilitating." Lan reached for her glasses and put them on, then slid out of bed. Her toes flinched away from the floor on impact, and she made a mental note to put some kind of rug down to avoid the cold floor from now on. She tiptoed across to Erica's bed, and tapped her on the shoulder, "Erica? Are you awake?"

For a few seconds there was no response, and then she heard a reluctant, "…maybe," and Erica rolled over to face her.

"Would you like to take our Pokémon to an arena for training?" Lan kept an optimistic tone to her voice; if she had the Butterfree, she wouldn't want to be thinking of training it the moment she got up.

"Sure." Erica rubbed the heels of her palms against her eyes, clearing away the sleep, before she sat up, "It used a sleep powder on me, didn't it?"

"Yes."

"Great." Erica experienced the same unpleasant feeling to her toes as her feet touched the floor, and she stretched, "Do you think Jefferson will let us pick an item to help train again? Since we're back to square one?"

"I'm not sure." Lan stumbled a little as Persian bumped up against her and threaded through her legs, "But I wouldn't even know where to start with Persian. It's just so friendly and happy. Do you think a normal Pokémon got put in there by mistake?"

"I don't know, but I doubt it." Erica started to rummage around in her side of the dresser, and along with her usual clothes she withdrew a scarf, "You can borrow my baby harness if you like, and take Persian for a walk. That's how you found out about Zubat, right?"

"Oh, I hope Persian doesn't have a perfume addiction. I'd feel bad bothering Nikki for more samples." Lan turned to get dressed herself, feeling a little strange to be sharing a room with someone. True, Erica had stayed in her room over the break, but that was a special instance. She and Erica would now be sharing a room for four months.

"I'm wondering if Conrad used up all his mace on Lickitung," Erica's voice sounded muffled, as she didn't pause her talking as she pulled her shirt over her head, "and if he'll let me use what's left if he didn't. Though I'm not sure fighting status changer with status changer will work with Butterfree."

Lan pulled on her socks, hoping against hope that none of her new Pokémon would feel the need to shred them, "What kind of a status changer is mace?"

"I think of it as a burning confuse ray." Erica tucked Butterfree's ball into her belt, suppressing a sigh at the empty spaces where her other Pokémon used to be, and then took the baby harness off the top shelf of her closet and handed it to Lan, "For you."

"Thank you." Lan knelt and tried to put the harness on Persian. It didn't hiss or try to scratch her, but it was remarkably unhelpful about the whole thing, and when the harness was finally on it flopped down and wouldn't move.

"Oh, come on Persian, let's go get some breakfast."

Persian complained with a loud yowl, ignoring the light tugs Lan was giving on the leash. Even when Erica opened the door, and despite the fact that Persian clearly wanted to go out, it remained where it was.

Lan sighed and bent over, picking up the large cat Pokémon with some difficulty. Finally, when its front paws were on her shoulders and its bum was supported by the curve of her arm, Lan was ready to leave the room. Persian licked the side of her head until they were out the door, at which point it looked around from its perch with interest.

Erica, who stayed slightly behind to close the door, shook her head with a smile. Part of her wanted to suggest that Lan not pamper the cat so much, while the other half thought she should just let her friend work it out on her own.

/

"It's ridiculous." Conrad was in the middle of a lunchtime rant, with Lysander as his sympathetic listener, "My new roommate stays up until it's practically morning, and then sleeps half the day away. I don't even know how he made it to class last semester! His new Pokémon is an Electrode who's as lazy as he is, go figure. That's a combination that's doomed to fail. Plus, he just _uses_ things; doesn't ask. He left the cap off my mouthwash and a bunch of dust got in there. It's… stop looking like that."

Lysander had been beaming at his former roommate, soaking up the unintentional compliments at full power. Now he tried, and failed, to get the big smile off his face, "So far Ellison has just ignored me. He doesn't spend a lot of time in our room, and when I suggest we do things together he snubs me and leaves."

"As he should. Don't waste your time on that scrubby snob, Lysander. You have way better friends."

"But he's my roommate," Lysander pointed out. "I'd like things to be civil between us. How'd the shovelling go?"

"Not well." Conrad had hoped against hope that Coach Belle would forget about he and Ellison's punishment work over the holidays, but it was not to be. They'd traded rakes for shovels, and every time there was a snowfall they were responsible for going out and keeping all the paths and courtyards clear. "I tried to get Poliwrath to help, but that went over like a lead balloon."

"At least you can turn around and not worry about your Pokémon triple-pecking you in the back," Lysander sighed.

"Don't give me that. I spent months last semester worrying about paralysis from Lickitung. It's about time someone else goes through what I did." Conrad was about to get started on another tirade, simply because he was feeling wound up, when he noticed Coach Belle move into the room and head for the announcement board. Due to Belle's size, it didn't take long for most of the other students to notice him too, and by the time he reached the board there was a small crowd forming up behind him.

"New initiative from the principal," he explained with an enthusiastic grin, while he stapled the poster onto the board. For a big man, he had no problem manoeuvring out of the gathering of students, and left them to read over Jefferson's latest idea.

Conrad pushed his way through the crowd, ignoring the protests and mutters as he usually did, and when he got to the front he scanned the announcement. All students were to have a Pod activity once per week, and each Saturday there would be a team-building exercise. The teams were to be four people in size, and each person had to belong to a different Pod colour.

"Tsh, pushing the friend-making a little hard." He turned to Lysander, who'd followed after him, "At least we can be in a team. I know you're not incompetent."

"What about Erica and Lan? Aren't they in Purple and Orange?"

A strange gleam came into Conrad's eyes, and it took a few long moments for Lysander to realize that it was excitement, just because it was Conrad who looked that way. After a subconscious readjustment of his cap, Conrad turned and started pushing back through the crowd, "Let's go get them before someone else does."

"Like who?" Lysander tagged at his heels.

"I don't know. Jericho."

"Maybe Erica _wants_ to be Jericho's teammate."

Conrad picked up his pace, "Well _I_ don't want her to be. She's exasperating, but she's going to be exasperating on _my_ team."

/

Lan sat outside the nurse's office, her arms looped under her Persian's front legs while the rest of the cat stretched to the floor. Butterfree's powder of choice this time had been poison, and while Erica had been able to summon the butterfly back into its ball and stagger to the infirmary, she'd collapsed just inside the door. Lan hugged Persian a little closer, taking comfort from the louder purrs that filled the air. She was beginning to suspect that her Persian was spoiled rotten, but it hadn't shown any problem with eating regular Pokechow or sitting on the floor while she used the bathroom.

Unhealthy coughs brought her attention back to the present, and she thought for a brief second that Erica was coming out, but then she saw Ellison heading for the infirmary. In his arms was Suza, and she appeared to be the source of the coughing. Behind him trotted a Doduo, and its left head was holding a leek in its beak.

Lan didn't make any attempt to talk to Ellison as he took Suza inside, but when he came out a few minutes later she cleared her throat and asked, "What happened to her?"

He shot a frown her way that was probably accompanied by a glare, but she couldn't see his eyes due to his hat, "What do you think?"

"Pokémon trouble? Erica got poisoned by her Butterfree."

His expression changed, and he looked back toward the infirmary door, "Is she all right?"

Lan swallowed the jealous knot in her throat, "The nurse says she'll have to stay overnight. What about Suza?"

"Her Muk tried to suffocate her." Ellison sat down on the bench across from Lan, and tugged the brim of his hat down further. By now, Lan recognized this as a sign that the conversation was over.

Inside the infirmary, Nurse Joy finished applying an antidote to Suza, and began packing up her things, "So many accidents already! Sometimes I wonder about what the principal's thinking…"

"You wouldn't be the only one," Suza coughed again, too sick and smothered to act cute. She wasn't even allowed to have visitors, and she'd just been told she had to stay overnight. In what was probably the most unwanted act of karma ever, the only other person in the infirmary was Erica, who would also be spending the night. Once again, they were going to be roommates.

Erica opened her eyes just enough to look at Suza, feeling nauseous even without the other girl being nearby, "Here's to wishing we still had our other Pokémon."

"Ugh," Suza flopped onto her back, trying to ignore how hard the infirmary cot was, "I'd drink to that, but I don't have anything to drink. Are you _sure_ we can't have visitors?"

This last was directed to Nurse Joy, who sent them both a sunshine smile, "I'm afraid not. You both need to rest and get well."

And with that, she closed the curtain and left them alone. As she headed back to her station, she heard Erica mutter, "Wish I had Butterfree to put me to sleep again…"

/

Lan spent a lonely night in her room, occasionally looking over at Erica's bed and wishing the other girl was better again. The worst part was that Butterfree could very well do the same thing again tomorrow, and she was already wracking her brains to try and think of a way for Erica to prevent the effects of the powder. She was sure Erica was doing the same.

She hadn't seen any of her other friends that day, though that could be because she'd spent a lot of it near the infirmary, both to keep a hopeful eye out for her roommate and friend and to try and figure out what exactly was wrong with Persian. In fact, she'd been so absorbed in trying to figure out her Pokémon that she hadn't noticed Ellison leave, or the fact that he was bothered by her not noticing.

In the morning, bleary-eyed and not particularly caring, Lan harnessed up her Persian to go to the infirmary. She ended up looping her arms under its front legs, as before, and carrying it there. Its back legs and tail dragged on the floor behind her, but Persian didn't seem to mind. It just purred. She was most of the way there when she heard Conrad calling her, and waited for him to catch up.

"Where have you two _been_?" From the way he snapped it, Lan didn't think he meant her and Persian, but he didn't give her a chance to answer, "Haven't you read Jefferson's latest announcement? There's going to be a weekly competition between teams of four, and each team has to have someone from a different Pod in it. Lysander and I have been looking all over for you and Erica!"

"Erica's in the infirmary." She noted the stunned look on Conrad's face, "Yes, again. Butterfree poisoned her this time. That's where we were all yesterday."

"Oh." He shifted his weight from one foot to the other and back again, before asking, "But you're going to be on our team, right?"

"You could be a _little_ more sensitive, Conrad."

"Hey, it's her PokeProject. If I don't get any slack for mine, she gets a similar amount for hers. She'll think of something. Want to do a practise battle?"

"CONRAD!"

There was more shuffling of the feet, "…sorry. When is she getting out?"

"Soon. I'm here to pick her up and take her back to our room."

Conrad looked her up and down, noting how she half-held her Persian, and then asked, "You think you'll be able to carry her?"

Lan let out a sigh of absolute exasperation, feeling her glasses slip down the bridge of her nose. Due to holding her Persian, she was unable to push them back up. If this was how Conrad behaved without Erica's sarcasm to keep him in check, Lan could only hope that Erica never got sick again.


	23. Chapter 23

_I apologize for my extended absence. I'm back!_

Chapter 23

"…just saying that this weekend is the first team competition. The _first_. It maybe wouldn't be a bad thing if you left the stupid bug in its ball for a few—"

"I'm not locking my Pokémon in its ball just so we can win a competition, Conrad."

It was Monday evening, and Erica was doing her best to not fall asleep at the table. Her morning training session with Lysander and their respective Pokémon hadn't gone well; while it was true that her Butterfree had used sleep powder instead of poison powder, the awakening potion Lysander had spritzed her with was clearly meant to be used on Pokémon. The result was a sort of half-wakefulness that allowed her to go to class but not be remarkably alert.

In an attempt to be helpful, Conrad slid an energy drink across the table to her, "But if you haven't come up with a plan on how to rehabilitate it, why go through all this? All it's doing is inhibiting your ability to think of a fix."

He was pretty sure he didn't deserve the scowl that she sent him, but before he could point this out Lan cut in with, "Shouldn't you be heading out for your Pod meeting soon, Conrad?"

A glance at his watch told him that Lan was quite correct; the Pink Pod was having its inaugural meeting in one of the lesser-used classrooms, and while he'd seen all of his new Podmates in class that morning, he wasn't sure he wanted to spend his free time with them. Knowing that Suza would be there wasn't helping his willingness to go, either. Seeing that Lan was still looking at him, he muttered, "I suppose I should. I still think they're pushing the friend-making too hard. And _where_ is Lysander?"

This last was said with indignation, and Lan sent an amused grin Erica's way as Conrad scanned the cafeteria for their missing friend and teammate. Of them all, Lysander was the one who made new friends with the least amount of difficulty, and the fact that he was having trouble connecting with his new roommate clearly bothered him. It failed to bother Conrad, who thought Ellison was a rather large waste of time.

When further scanning still failed to produce the missing member of their group, Conrad offered a few unintelligible grumbles to no one in particular and got up from the table. After depositing his tray on the rollers that would take it into the dishwashing section of the kitchens, he mentally prepared himself for interacting with a group of people he'd largely ignored all day, and walked out of the cafeteria.

/

When he got to the room, it wasn't what he'd expected. The desks were gone from the classroom, replaced with card tables and side tables clearly meant to hold snacks and drinks. Being one of the first students to arrive, Conrad side-shuffled into the room and proceeded to inspect a coaster, noting the F.O.C.U.S. logo stamped across it. In fact, even the decks of playing cards awaiting use seemed to have the logo. The ever-present cynic in him wondered how Principal Jefferson had convinced the funding board that _these_ were necessary for the rehabilitation of Pokémon.

"This should be interesting."

It was a sentiment floating around in his head, but he hadn't been the one to say the words. Conrad turned slightly to look at the girl standing in the doorway. It took a few seconds before the name came to him, and which point he nodded a welcome, "Ginny. I didn't know you were in my Pod."

"Pink, you mean?" She smirked at the wince that passed over his face, "Someone higher up hates us. The colour has so many connotations there's no possible way to create a new statement for it. And it's worse for you men, I'm sure."

"It is." Conrad couldn't help joining her in smirking, "Opinionated, aren't you?"

"I lay my cards on the table," Ginny shrugged, moving to a chair on the opposite side of the table. "You'll be my partner then?"

Other students were entering the room, each looking as prepared to dislike the gathering out of spite as the next. Conrad found himself nodding even as he said, "I have no idea what we'll be playing."

Ginny just shrugged again, a one-shouldered motion that matched the neutral expression on her face, "I'm sure whoever is chaperoning this get-together has something in mind. Sit; let's try to fill our table before people we don't like get here."

Seeing as he hardly knew anyone else in Pink, Conrad's mind went immediately to Suza, and something made him think that Ginny was also thinking of the strawberry-loving former-Blue. The thought certainly had him taking his seat in short order. As the room continued to fill, he found himself watching each new person who entered before turning his head slightly toward Ginny for her opinion. Most of the time they disagreed, a raising of the eyebrows meeting with a small shake of the head, but two other students in their Pod received raised eyebrows on both ends. When the agreed-upon students looked he and Ginny's way, Conrad waved them over.

"Hey there." The girl leaned a palm against the back of one of the free chairs, and as she took them in her face gave off the distinct feeling that she was measuring them up physically. The boy, on the other hand, seemed to be scrutinizing their hairstyles and choice of clothing. After a few wordless seconds both sat down, the girl first turning her chair around to sit on it backwards, "I'm Alexa. Former Red. This is Andy."

"Andrew." The boy corrected automatically, the slight irritation in his tone letting it be known that he'd made the correction many times before, "Andrew Fletcher. I was in the Yellow Pod last term, as if that matters."

"Ginny. Conrad." Ginny flicked her finger first at herself, then at Conrad as she returned the introductions. "Former White and Green, respectively, and both wishing we were in a different colour."

"Right?" Alexa picked up the deck of cards and started shuffling it, despite the fact that the organizer had yet to appear and tell them what the evening's activity was. "The only _good_ thing about being in Pink is that it gives you an excuse to challenge people to fights when they make fun of you."

"You _would_ say that." Andrew sniffed, leaning the side of his face into a palm and idly toying with the gold chain around his neck, "Though I suppose if they'd changed all the Pods to numbers or something, people would just start debating over which was better."

Conrad let the bantering continue without him, distracted first by what Alexa had said and second by the realization of what was drawing this Pod together. The more he looked around the room, the more he noticed the more dominant personalities. That Roselyn wasn't there surprised him, but with that notable exception it looked like nearly _every_ opinionated, self-confident student in the school was present. He wasn't sure whether he was unsettled that the principal had put them all together, or suddenly challenged to emerge at the top as the most self-confident, opinionated one of them all.

On the far side of the room, Suza wasn't feeling the same challenge. She was sitting at a table with three rather attractive boys, it was true, but they were all posturing to one another about silly boy things, and consequently ignoring her. They'd introduced themselves beforehand, but with no further conversation to hold her interest she'd forgotten their names, and mentally assigned them the titles of Brendan, Steven, and George, to be used interchangeably as she so chose. The fact that she would be spending the next four months in this Pod, and that this wasn't just some experiment in disorientation before she was returned to Blue, hadn't quite settled in permanently just yet.

"…that Machop from last semester that got to the finals of the Level One tournament. Man, was I ever jealous. My starter was a Psyduck and all it wanted to do was pick flowers."

Amidst the sympathetic-yet-slightly-mean-spirited laughter that followed, Suza tuned back into the conversation and the words coming from Steven's mouth. A little stunned to discover that someone had actually been _secretly _jealous of her Pokémon, because of course all of her friends had told her how amazing it was and that they wanted one, she stared at him in a manner bordering on slack-jawed before stammering, "But why didn't you say anything?"

"Huh?" It was fortunate that Steven happened to look good when clueless, because Suza got the impression that he walked around in that state on a regular basis.

"To m… to the Machop's trainer." She attempted to hide a grimace at her eagerness to claim the Machop was hers. In other company she may not have been successful, but as her lapse in cuteness appeared to go unnoticed she sent a silent prayer to something in thanks for these boys' lack of scrutiny. Seeing as no one seemed to be grasping what she was saying, she explained, "Don't you think the Machop's trainer would have liked to hear how much you liked the Pokémon? I'll bet a lot of work went into rehabilitating it."

"Yeah, but its trainer was a _girl_." Failing to notice the flicker of irritation in Suza's eyes, he continued, "No self-respecting guy with only a Psyduck and a Caterpie to his name is going to walk up to a girl and gush about her Machop. No way."

This seemed to be the general consensus around the table and, as the organizer finally showed up and began passing out instructions on how to play 99, Suza settled back in her chair with a grumble and resolved to spend the remainder of the evening picking other people to sit with next time.

/

Much the same thought was going through Erica's head the following night, when the Orange Pod met for its first evening get-together. Unlike the Pink gathering, the classroom housing the Orange Pod was set up for an ice cream social, and all the sprinkles and sauces in the world couldn't make up for the fact that there was nothing to do besides eat ice cream and talk. She'd hoped, from listening to Conrad's rather triumphant description of _his_ Pod meeting, that each gathering would be the same. Apparently not.

Within the circle of comfy chairs and couches in which she sat, Erica resigned herself to quietly eating her ice cream and keeping a pleasant, neutral expression on her face as those around her discussed the latest socialite experiences happening in Kanto. She was still a little tired from Butterfree's sleep powder attack that afternoon, but at least she had time to take a nap the normal way; she intended to avoid getting sprayed with awakening potion where possible. The annoyance she felt at having picked a mostly-former-White circle to sit in took second place only to the surprise that Roselyn wasn't sitting in it. In fact, the former queen bee of White appeared to be in a group of former-Blues and former-Yellows, and Erica grudgingly and silently admired her peacekeeping skills.

"What gets me is what she thinks she has to gain by it." The words were spoken in a murmur, and closer to Erica's ear than anything previous. She started slightly and turned to look at the boy sitting beside her on the couch. The rest of the conversation carried on without them, leaving him free to continue, "Most of those people are from upstart families. New money. No _real_ connection to the upper class."

"Snob." It was more a statement of fact than an insult, and Erica went back to spooning her ice cream into her mouth with a determination that should have told him to leave her alone.

"Not like us." He continued on like he hadn't even heard her, "I'll admit that the goal of FOCUS is one that draws people from all walks of life, but these continued attempts to force interaction are more than a tad… galling."

Erica snorted, setting aside her ice cream before it gave her brain freeze, "It's people like you who've made the whole thing necessary."

"I just take a more realistic approach." His tone was slightly defensive now. "Once we graduate, what are the chances we'll see these people again? It's hardly as though the social circles overlap."

"Why are you saying 'we'?" There was definite suspicion in her voice, but she kept her tone low, "Look, if you want to spend all your time here criticizing other people's bank accounts, I'm not going to stop you. But leave me out of it. I didn't come here to obsess over what's going on back home or how awesome my family is. I came here to make new friends and rehabilitate Pokémon."

"So did I." It irritated her that he was so dismissive about his own prejudice, but he didn't seem to be reading any of her emotions very well, "You must admit that graduating from FOCUS looks quite impressive on a social resume, though."

"I'm changing seats." She said it loud enough for a few of the other to look over, making the boy experience a brief moment of embarrassed discomfort as she picked up her ice cream and left the circle. She'd barely gone two steps before she noticed Roselyn waving her over, and didn't think twice before walking over and taking a seat in the space made for her, "That boy is an ass."

Several of the students in the new circle grinned, and Roselyn smiled, "Martin Aldred. He _is_ rather full of himself, but I wouldn't provoke him too much if I were you; he's Jericho's roommate."

While Erica recovered from the unimpressed expression that dropped onto her face and stayed there, a girl she vaguely remembered as belonging to Suza's pre-makeover posse spoke up, "He got really lucky with his Pokémon picks last semester; two of them just needed TMs. This time he got a Magicarp, and all he's doing is feeding it rare candies."

"What's wrong with it?" One of the boys in the circle wanted to know.

The girl shrugged, "Beats me. Whenever I've seen it out of its ball it flops toward people, but he usually summons it back before then. Maybe it's overly affectionate like that supersized Blastoise from last semester?"

"Then he definitely shouldn't be evolving it into something sixty times bigger." Erica thought of her run-in with Jericho's Onyx, and how she'd very nearly been swallowed by _her_ Gyarados. Still, the Magicarp was Martin's to deal with, and she hardly wanted to start spending more time in his presence just to tell him he was doing it wrong. She'd done that enough last semester with Conrad.

The evening continued on, and as it did Erica grudgingly enjoyed her seating switch. It was almost as though the former-Blues lost the bulk of their fashion obsession and relaxed into friendly people, now that they were in the same Pod as many of the snobbiest former-Whites. Right when Erica was admitting to herself that perhaps Jefferson knew what he was doing after all, the get-together was called to a close for the night. She lingered in the room to avoid crossing paths with Martin, and wasn't particularly surprised when Roselyn stayed behind as well.

When they did leave, Roselyn spoke up almost immediately, "You're wearing another nice outfit tonight, Erica."

Erica glanced down, almost as if she didn't know what she had on, before explaining, "I figured it'd be a good idea to put something nice on for the first meeting, to make a good impression."

To her dismay, Roselyn clearly wasn't buying it. One toss of the hair later, the other girl continued, "I've been keeping track, you know. You haven't worn a single tacky or oversized piece of clothing since the dance last semester. And now you've been sorted into the Pod that clearly has the students with influential family members in Kanto."

"So what's your point?"

Roselyn closed the distance between them and put her finger on the tip of Erica's nose, "Just that I've been watching, and I'm going to figure out where I should know you from. Unless you'd like to tell me up front."

Erica shook her head to get rid of Roselyn's finger, and rolled her eyes as she did so, "Have fun snooping. Maybe you can get Suza to join in."

It unsettled her that Roselyn actually smirked instead of getting irritated, "Maybe I will. See you in class tomorrow, Erica."

/

While he would have been fine with eating ice cream or playing cards, Lysander was much happier that Coach Belle was the Brown Pod's event planner for that week. They were currently on their way out to a large frozen pond to go skating, walking on a path cleared off by Conrad and Ellison that morning. When he'd confessed to his classmates that he didn't know how to skate he'd been swarmed with offers to be taught, but in the end he'd gone with Nikki. Besides fully supporting her attempts to make Conrad less of a curmudgeon, he admired her dedication to playing fair during the obstacle course over the winter break.

"I didn't even know this pond was _here_." Nikki enthused. She held the laces of her skates in one hand, letting the boots drape over her shoulder, and with every stride she took they made a soft 'thunk'. The skates were hers, bright white in colour and trimmed in soft pink, and a sequined flower was stamped on the outer side of each. Lysander, like the majority of the Brown Pod, was using borrowed skates from the school's collection of donations, and try as he might he couldn't seem to manage the skates with the same casualness Nikki did. More than once the cover of the blade poked him in the back.

Drawn to enthusiasm as he always was, Coach Belle turned and flashed Nikki a thumbs up, "Back before Principal Jefferson took over as head of the school, there were a few specialized arenas set up across the property for battling. Most of them are gone, now, but there wasn't much of a point in taking out a bunch of water. Ah, here we are."

The group spread out along the edge of the pond and looked it over. Several logs were sitting near the edge, clearly placed there for the purpose of putting on skates, and Nikki led Lysander over to one without much of a pause, "This is great. The ice is smooth, so it's not like you'll trip over a lump or anything."

"Oh good." Lysander wasn't sure whether to be relieved or amused, as he wasn't sure if she was joking or serious. Nikki was so bubbly most of the time it was hard to tell. In the span of time it took him to take a seat and remove one of his boots Nikki already had one of her skates laced, and he was only halfway through figuring out how the back-and-forth lacing pattern worked by the time she'd finished.

"Here, let me." She didn't think anything of taking control of his foot and leg, and he was too busy watching her technique to see the not-so-subtle glares other girls were sending Nikki's way. "These won't be the most comfortable things you've ever worn, since it's not like they were custom-made for you or anything, but they'll do well enough."

It didn't surprise Lysander that Nikki's skates were custom-made. After all, his surfboard was. Once the skates were laced up, he gave each foot an experimental wiggle to get used to the new weight. That done, he attempted to get to his feet, but flailed for the log as one of his blades made contact with the ice and shot out from under him. One small bruise to his backside later, he looked up at Nikki with a pity-me expression, "Help?"

She grinned, and held out mitten-covered hands for him, "It's not hard once you get used to it. Besides, you have great balance, so this shouldn't take long at all."

He couldn't help but grin back at her, as her light-hearted nature buoyed up his own. In short order he was standing, and making his first tentative slides across the ice. As they went, Nikki gave him advice and used the toe of one foot to correct his stance, "Think of when you're walking around the house with no shoes on, and you get an itch on the bottom of your foot. You push down and slide on your foot to itch it, right? Do that. There! See?"

Lysander looked down at his skates like he'd done magic, and in what seemed like the next instant he was staring up at the sky. Nikki appeared in his line of sight a second or two later, mittens covering her mouth as she obviously tried not to laugh. Puzzled, he asked, "What happened?"

"Oh, oh Lysander I'm sorry, I didn't mean _literally_ to look and see." Nikki giggled, then knelt down and started rearranging his splayed limbs, "If you look at your feet you usually end up where they are; on the ice."

"I fell?" Lysander sat up, looking around at the other students venturing onto the ice. It appeared he was the first casualty of the day, and he wasn't sure he liked it. "How do I get back up? Do I have to crawl back to the log?"

"Hmm? No, no, I'll show you. This foot like this, this foot over here, hands go here and here, and push."

The instructions ingrained themselves into Lysander's head over the next hour and a half, but at least he wasn't the only one getting up close and personal with the ice. Even Coach Belle took several spills, making the ice in the immediate area shake slightly every time he went down. On one such occasion, Lysander happened to be nearby and recovering from a fall of his own. Halfway through standing back up, he paused, watching a slight ripple under the ice. Perplexed, he turned to Nikki for an explanation.

"Oh, water doesn't freeze all the way to the bottom." She didn't seem to think anything of it, but when he pressed her for additional details she said, "It has to do with the temperature in the ground. It isn't low enough to freeze the water all the way through, so it's just really cold down there. There are probably Goldeen and Poliwag living down there right now."

"_Really_?" Far from continuing to stand back up, Lysander flopped onto his stomach and cupped his hands around his face, trying to see any Pokémon beneath the ice. "How are they not getting sick from the cold? And what are they eating?"

His questions came out muffled, but clear enough for Nikki to understand, "I'm not sure. It's a pond, though, so there are probably weeds and things for them to eat. Can you see anything?"

"No." Clearly disappointed, Lysander gave up on trying to peer through the ice and went through the process of standing up again, "It's too deep. Maybe they got scared by all the falling and swam further down."

Nikki grinned, "Maybe. How about you stop falling, and we'll see if they come back?"

He laughed, "Sounds like a plan to me!"

/

Despite the majority of her friends telling her that their Pod meetings had gone well, Lan was still deeply hesitant about how the Purple Pod's get-together would go. All through the week she'd tried to meet a classmate's eye and give a friendly smile, but most of them either ignored her or were looking somewhere else. Ellison certainly made a point of looking at her for a few pointed seconds before turning away, and she was well and truly beginning to find him childish for doing so.

She arrived late to the cafeteria, where she found Lysander, Conrad, and Nikki. Lysander looked put out about something, while the other two appeared to be trying to cheer him up. With Persian sauntering along at her side and occasionally licking her knee through the cloth of her pants, Lan arrived at the table and took a seat, "Is something wrong?"

"Butterfree covered Erica with poison powder again." Nikki explained, placing a sympathetic hand on Lysander's arm, "Lysander tried using an antidote on her, but it didn't exactly help."

"It made it _worse_." Lysander groaned, letting his forehead hit the table with a thud.

"The spasms were something of an added effect, yes." Nikki placed a hand on Lysander's back and rubbed it, unaware of how strange her description sounded.

She was also unaware of the somewhat annoyed look that flickered across Conrad's face, but he distracted himself from his own frown by finishing up the story for Lan's benefit, "They took her up to the infirmary, and Nurse Joy got rid of the shakes in a few minutes. Then she gave Lysander a lecture against using Pokémon medicine on a person, and kicked them out." Seeing the pointed look Nikki shot him, he grimaced and added, "When I found out I went up there to see if Erica would be out by Saturday. I was _also_ given a lecture."

Lan sighed, taking comfort in the bump of her Persian's head against her side, "I don't know if Erica's thinking this through. I know she doesn't believe in outright confronting her Pokémon, but I'm not sure reasoning will work this time. She did joke about asking you if she could borrow your mace, Conrad."

"I'd let her," he replied instantly. "I doubt she'll ask, though. We sort of… don't do that."

Given that he'd felt like his teeth were being pulled every time he'd had to ask Erica for help in the past, he could only imagine what she'd feel if she was forced to do the same. Realizing something, he gave a glance at his watch before asking Lan, "Isn't it time for _your_ Pod meeting?"

Lan frowned, knowing full well that she'd reminded him of the same thing earlier in the week. She'd barely even begun to eat her dinner, but knew that if she still had an hour until the Purple Pod met she probably wouldn't eat that much more. She pushed the tray down the table to the others, inviting them to take what they'd like, "It is… I just don't know anyone in it."

"My roommate's in Purple." Conrad picked over the tray's contents with his eyes before shamelessly snagging the brownie, "Douglass. Terminally lazy look to him, you can't miss it. He's friendly enough, when he's not sleeping or messing up my things."

"Okay, I'll look for him." While it wasn't exactly a stellar recommendation, it was enough to get Lan out of her seat and heading for the door. She couldn't help but look down at Persian as she went, unable to forget that Erica had been the original holder of its Pokèball. Part of her knew that Erica would never accept a trade, even if the school rules allowed it, but she still couldn't help feeling a little guilty. Only when Persian mewed at her was she able to shake off the feeling and continue on her way.

The Purple Pod was meeting in the gym, and most of her classmates were already there by the time she arrived. Most of them also had their Pokémon out, which she found strange; from what she'd heard from her friends, the other Pod meetings had been people-only events. There were mats spread out across the gym floor, and it didn't take long for Lan to realize that they were yoga mats. Mr. Hartog was presiding over the gathering, and paused in setting up the CD player to smile at her, "There's still time to change into your gym clothes, Miss Reeves. Will your Persian be joining us?"

Seeing as Persian was already doing an accurate downward dog pose, wiggling its front toes while doing so, Lan nodded, "I think so, yes."

One change of clothes later, Lan was back, and before she could choose her own yoga matt she was being waved over to one by a boy she concluded must be Douglass. His sandy blonde hair was four or five inches long, flopping into his face and partially covering eyes that, true to Conrad's description, seemed quite… well, Lan wouldn't call them _lazy_, but there was certainly a laidback air about him.

"I heard Hartog say your last name's Reeves. You're Lan, right?" Douglass gave her a half-smile as she sat down, as if giving the full thing would be just a tad too much effort, "Conrad talks about you. Told me to watch out for you and stuff."

"He did?" Lan looked between Douglass and his Electrode, amused to see the same expression on both faces.

"Yeah." The relaxing music started, and without giving it much thought Douglass bent into the first pose being demonstrated by Mr. Hartog, "He's really uptight, y'know? Always like… 'Don't touch that,' and 'Why was the door unlocked,' and 'After I graduate I'm joining the Pokémon League.' No down time for that guy."

Lan couldn't help the giggles that came out of her throat, at both Douglass' description of Conrad and the continuous drawl that seemed to be his way of talking. She tried to copy what Douglass was doing, but flopped onto the matt almost immediately. More than a little embarrassed, she tried again, with the same result.

Douglass shook his head, "Naw, you're putting way too much effort in. Look at Electrode; he's got the right idea."

The only difference Lan could see in the spherical Pokémon was that it had tipped slightly sideways, and she blinked, "How do you know it's a he?"

"Oh. Well, I called him a him and he didn't spark me or anything, so… I guess he's a he." Douglass changed into a more relaxed version of the pose, one that Lan was able to copy without falling over, "Yeah, there you go. You gotta do it how you can do it, y'know? Cause you can't do it how you can't do it. It doesn't work that way."

"I… suppose that makes sense." Lan glanced over at her Persian, which was busy sticking the toes of one back foot over its head while it groomed its leg. "Show off." The cat broke off mid-lick to mew at her and flop over on its side, grooming its shoulder instead. With a smile and a shake of the head, Lan turned her attention back to Douglass, "So you and Electrode are getting along quite well, then."

"Yeah, we're buds." Douglass flashed his Pokémon a thumbs up, and it sent him a happy look with its eyes, "It's no good calling a Pokémon lazy and trying to get it to be energetic all the time, y'know? You've got to find low-key stuff to do." He changed positions again, and his Electrode tilted back the other way, "You bond with a Pokémon, it does what it can for you. If it can't do what you want, maybe you have to find other stuff it can do."

Lan found herself nodding along, but then she stopped, "Unless it wants to do what you're asking, but it doesn't know how." She looked back at her Persian, images of Lysander's Sandslash coming to mind. "I think I need to get you a TM."


End file.
